Baby Steps.

Things are starting to come together through baby steps, slow, continuous growth. I love it when I can see progress. Today a lot of progress was made on the play I’m directing. We produced flyers for the play and started distributing them. We got the flats for the set moved from the storage building they were in to the shop where we can work on them, and we started getting the last of the props together. The set is actually pretty cool. Four triangles on casters is our main backdrop. Each side of the triangle is painted with a different scene, so for a total scene change, all we have to do is rotate the triangles. It’s pretty cool. Costumes are still a bit of a nightmare for me, but through providence, I have a lead on some great costumes we might borrow (or at least someone who might help sew). We were able to get into the sound booth today and I got to look at the sound and light boards and see the diagrams of where lights are focused, so I have a good idea of what lighting needs to be done. We’ve got the music figured out for the most part, I just need to edit some of it down a bit so it’s not too long for the set changes. I’m really thankful I didn’t take on a really huge production, but I hope the kids will feel like this was one of their best performances, experiences, etc. and that most of all, they will take pride in what they did and look back on it in years to come with fond memories. After all, that’s what high school is all about right? Making memories, and learning to find your wings.

Music

Do you remember the song that was playing when.........

You danced with your crush in jr high/high school?
You looked into someone else's eyes and your heart flipped?
You had your first (or best) kiss?

Why is music so important to us? This question has been rolling around in my head for a while. To answer it, as best I can, I'm going to go back to the Bible study I just finished. It was over the Psalms, and as most people know, the Psalms were actually songs. It was not only a means of remembering, but as someone put it, music can express what your soul means, that mere words can't alone convey.

Music reaches deep down into my soul and releases those pent up emotions that I could never express in words alone. Something about the harmonies, melody, haunting, sweet, seductive, worshipful, joyous, melancholy, angry, confused, anxious, pensive. All those ranges of emotion used to convey different meaning to mere words.

Music has always been an important part of my life. For many years, I didn't sing, or play, and I lost part of myself. In the last few years, I've had opportunities to re-connect with that part of myself and start singing and playing again.

Recently, I've also started really enjoyed listening to scores from musicals. For the most part, my children don't enjoy watching musicals (although my daughters watched all of "Cats", which I couldn't stand). Sometimes I feel like I'd like my life to be set to music. There are definitely songs that perfectly describe my life.
I'm going to add this meme on here, just because it fits the topic. The rules are:
1. Open your music player
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Hit 'next' for each question on the list
4. Don't cheat or try to be cool, just put what song randomly comes up.


Opening Credits: Precious Love - Newsboys
Waking Up: Every Story is a love Story - Aida
First Day At School: I Can Do Better than That - The Last 5 years
Falling In Love: Joy - Newsboys
Breaking Up: Bandora's Box - Lysa Lynne
Prom: Don't Tell Me You Love Me - Night Ranger
Life is Good: Let the Kingdom Come - Whiteheart
Mental Breakdown: Jesus, Lover of My Soul - Wow worship Red Disc
Driving: Four in the Morning - Night Ranger
Flashback: Puppies everywhere - 101 Dalmations soundtrack (? don't ask me!) :)
Getting Back Together: Entertaining Angels - Newsboys
Wedding: Easy as Life - Aida
Paying the Dues: A Miracle Would Happen/When you came home to me - The last 5 years
The Night Before The War: Nothing but the best - Whiteheart
Final Battle: Bird on a wire - Out of the Grey
Moment of Triumph: Lifelines - Out of the Grey
Death Scene: Rosa Mystica - Kitaro
Funeral Song: Written in the Stars - Aida
End Credits: Make a Joyful noise - David Crowder

Interesting. :) Give it a try.

Good Neighbors

A good neighbor is a fellow who smiles at you over the back fence, but doesn't climb over it.
~ Arthur Baer

In my life, I've been fortunate enough to have really great neighbors wherever I've lived.
Growing up, Michelle and Kenny lived next door, and though they went to a different school, we had a lot of fun. Tami lived catty corner across the street. She and I were friends clear until we graduated from high school. We still keep in touch at Christmas.

When I was in college, I lived in several basement apartments and always got along well with the upstairs neighbors. Which was amazing considering one set had a 2 year old boy.

When I was first married, we lived next to Kim, who asked me to go with her to help her on the closing of her house. She and I would take walks every morning. Not only was she a friend, she was a sister in Christ. I was fortunate enough to see her last weekend when I stopped by the old neighborhood we lived in.

When we moved to Wyoming, we had neighbors that our kids grew up with. Their daughter, Kari, is still one of my oldest daughter's best friends.

When I moved back to Colorado I had fantastic neighbors in both the townhouse I lived in when I was single and then the neighbors I had when I got remarried and we bought our house. Today I got a package in the mail from one of those neighbors, Kevin, who just wanted to see how I was doing in my new place. He'd just come back from a trip, and picked me up something while he was there. How thoughtful of him! I usually watched his guinea pig while he was out of town, so I guess old habits die hard there. ;)

My current neighbors, Leon and Carolyn, came over today and lent me a shovel and a broom to help me get my huge piles of leaves and trash out of the yard. Now that the snow has all melted and I can get out and do some yard work I'm realizing how few tools I actually have. Later on, Leon will bring over a ladder to help me hang some things high up in the wall I can't reach with my step ladder. They also watched my dogs when I went on vacation. We're going to share flowers and cuttings this spring and fall and watch the birds together. I'm looking forward to it.

The Bible talks a lot about neighbors. In the old testament there are lots of rules on how to live next to someone. In the new testament we are admonished by Jesus himself to 'love our neighbors as ourselves' which is the second greatest commandment. We are told to rejoice with our neighbors, to be a neighbor like the Good Samaritan. Here in the blogsphere, I have a lot of neighbors. Some people visit here in my little world every day, some a little less often, but whenever you have a chance to drop on by, I'm glad you do. So, neighbor, I'm glad we're friends. Drop by my little place here anytime.

How You Live

I've been asked to sing in a trio at church. That's exciting, I've missed singing since I moved. The song we're going to sing is "How you live" by Point of Grace. The lyrics are fantastic and I'm excited to be invited to sing. Of course, it got me to thinking about all the things I SHOULD do and don't. I've been trying lately to call friends more, send more real mail, take time to dance and be silly with my kids. Life does tend to get in the way though, and it's a good reminder that it's not who you know, not what you did, but how you live.

A Woman Should Have...

I'm blatantly stealing this from someone else's blog. But, I really think it's true, and the older I get, the truer it is.


A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …
enough money within her control to move out
and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
something perfect to wear if her employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
a youth she’s content to leave behind…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
a past juicy enough that she’s looking forward to
retelling it in her old age…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
one friend who always makes her laugh… and one who lets her cry…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored…

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE…
a feeling of control over her destiny…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to fall in love without losing herself…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without ruining the friendship…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
when to try harder and WHEN TO WALK AWAY…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
that she can’t change the length of her calves,
the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
that her childhood may not have been perfect… but its over…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
what she would and wouldn’t do for love or more…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to live alone even if she doesn’t like it…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
whom she can trust,
whom she can’t,
and why she shouldn’t take it personally…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
where to go…
be it to her best friend’s kitchen table…
or a charming inn in the woods…
when her soul needs soothing…

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
what she can and can’t accomplish in a day…
a month…and a year…

This poem has often been attributed to Maya Angelou but actually it is by Pamela Redmond Satran.

Just the way you are...

Today a girl friend of mine and I were talking about a relationship she's in. It's difficult, it's frustrating, and she's barely hanging on some days, but the relationship is worth the effort because her honey loves her for herself and she doesn't have to be anyone other than who she is. She's decided to tough it out, and keep working on it, because what she's found is so rare. I'm rooting for her.

Then, on the way home tonight, I heard the Billy Joel song "I love you just the way you are". I really listened to the words and it meant a lot to me. In my life, there have been very few people whom I believe love me just for me. My parents do, my children do, I have certain friends that do. Most significant though, I'm finally on that list. I know I have some rough edges, I know there are situations I wish I'd handled better. Perfectionism whispers insistently and points out all my failures (and those negative voices from the past don't help much) but I'm slowly learning to tune them out, and to hear "I love you just the way you are" from a variety of voices in my life. That doesn't mean I'll quit working on those rough edges, but it's sure nice to know that I'm loved because I'm me.

Levity Brevity

So, it's April 1st. And besides Mother nature pulling a prank and having March come in like a lamb and go out like a lion this year, nothing yet has happened on this traditionally prank-filled day. As I was growing up, my mom and brother would always pull pranks on me. Usually, my mom would do something sneaky at breakfast like giving us tea rather than apple juice, and putting cotton balls inside biscuits replacing sugar with salt, all those things. My brother one time set up an elaborate prank involving marionettes, tape recorders and lighting. My son has caught this April Fool's fever, and I'm sure when I get home today he'll have something up his sleeve (and since my prankster mother is visiting, I'm sure she'll help him). If you're looking for some information on where April Fool's Day started, or need some tom-foolery inspiration, check out the links below.

Wikipedia
Learning Haven

April Fools.Com
Practical Jokes for the whole Family