I drove to the panhandle of Nebraska with my friend, Karyn, last Thursday for a Lutheran omen's Convention (LWML). We drove through the sandhills and lots of nowhere to get there and once we did we met kindred spirits, sisters in Christ and we remembered who we were and we laughed and shared peace and comfort with one another.
I was invited to be the keynote speaker. I am not a speaker. I am a singer/songwriter. I wrote that speech about 6 times over the course of the past two weeks until finally, I had to fall back on old advice and practice it again for the first time, "Be honest. Tell the truth." I spent all those hours trying to write as if I were a speaker and as if I had some wisdom that I don't really have. So in the end, I got up there and did what I do. I sang some songs, I tried to tell my story because it's the only one I know and pray that someone might see themselves in the story or consider the gifts of God in a new way by hearing how I've discovered them. Or something.
I did not feel qualified. I felt less than qualified. I felt vulnerable and out of my depths, but I did it anyway and I'm glad that I did. I was inspired by the people I met there and I was encouraged by people who did hear something that helped them. And I'm super glad I made it over that hurdle. Phew!
Hamilton. Do it. Buy the album. Especially if you've ever felt like you've got something to share with the world and you feel like the world isn't listening. Hamilton. The story is hard to believe and it's true. The music is hard to believe, but it's true and it's pivotal. It will change music. It will remind people what art can do. It's already doing that. "Rise up" is not a sign hanging in a dusty museum. It is a call to all of us. I, for one, am NOT throwing away my shot. I'm going after it.
I left home for the sandhills on Thursday while my husband was still in New York, I came home late on Saturday night from the retreat and my husband and two little boys left for camp on Sunday after lunch. I've been far away from my family for a long time now and I'm craving our togetherness. We leave for Indiana on Sunday after church and the thought of a 10 hour car ride sounds wonderful. I need my people. We're going to spend a week together at the lake with Jon's parents. Thank God for quiet and for water and for summer time. It's exactly what we need right now.