MiniMe Mom: September 2010

So many moments of my life center around music. Each time I hear the song it transports me back to the significant memory surrounding it, and I am right back in the middle of that moment again.

End of the Road by Boys II Men, circa 1994, instantly transports me back to my sophomore year in high school. I am in the school cafeteria with a fog machine sweeping the floor with gray smoke. One lone spotlight illuminates the room. I am slow dancing, the first time I have ever danced with a boy. Feeling grown up and insecure at the same time, every time I hear End of the Road I flash back to that night and can still feel the butterflies dancing in my stomach as I twirl around the floor.

FootLoose- I am in junior high. I just switched from Christian to public school, and I long for a place to fit in. Reasoning the dance team might be a good fit, I conjure up the nerve to ask Melody if she will try out with me. We buy cheap dollar store poms and come up with a routine to FootLoose. My dance skills were awful. I did not make the team, but I did make a new friend.

Grease Lightening I am 16, driving up to my cottage with three friends. I feel the warm breeze slapping my hair against my face as Grease Lightening plays over the radio. We are doing the motions out the window with our arms. We smoke cigarettes until my parents pull up behind us. I remember tipping my head back and laughing so freely. Not a care in the world.

Freshman by the Verve Pipe. It is ironically my freshman year in college. I just pledged AOII. Our brother fraternity was having a 70s party to celebrate new members, and probably to meet their new sister pledges. The bottom floor of their frat house was void of furniture. This particular night was wall to wall college students, talking and chatting and screaming and shaking. Freshman blared over the speakers, everyone in the room joined a huge circle to sing at the top of our lungs.

Andrea Boccelli and Sarah Brightman, Time to Say Goodbye. Josh and I celebrate Valentines Day in Vegas with a large group of people. The Bellagio fountains sync to my heart at the very moment they dance on beat to Mr. Boccelli. If you have never heard this song, it is haunting and beautiful. I board the plane with large black sunglasses on. I am flying Southwest. Late to board, I am stuck in the front row facing another passenger. I listen to my CD player, on repeat of this song, and cry the whole way home. The man across pretends not to notice, and I am thankful. It would be almost a full year before Josh and I were living in the same spot. Later, it would be the same song I listened on repeat when I missed my mom. That first year in Redlands was horribly difficult without my family.

I Will Be Here, Steven Curtis Chapman. My dress is large, my train is long, and everything sparkles. I watch my brothers walk to the front of the church. I stand in the back foyer searching for my dad. I see the tears in his eyes as he walks towards me. 200 of our closest friends are waiting for me to turn the corner and walk towards my groom. A waive of nervousness falls over me and I tell my dad that I need to run to the bathroom because I am going to be sick. He whispers, "We don't have time, honey. Take a deep breath", grabs my arm, and leads me down the aisle to the love of my life. The person who understands me and I love with all that I am. I have no clue what is ahead of us; I just know that I am walking toward the man I dreamt of since I was 7. Somebody by Depeche Mode is suddenly playing as I dance with him as his wife.

Hallelujah by Handel. Josh is part of a 6 person Barbershop Quartet (I know, 6 people in a quartet? What can I say, I did not pick the name) the Christmas after I had Kayden. We are in a historical chapel on the University of Redlands campus, and there is a shiny black grand piano playing for the singers (Also not a barbershop, right? I digress).
Only 2 months old, Kayden is dressed in a red and green plaid sweater vest with a matching pageboy cap. I look down at his perfectly formed face, ten tiny fingers, sweet little ears. I could not have imagined this love. He makes these wonderful grunting sounds in my ear as I stand and watch Josh sing praises to our Savior. I am reminded of how much God loves me, that he would willingly give up His son. The ultimate sacrifice, the definition of love.

Apple Bottom Jeans, Single Ladies, Cecilia, Come on Eileen- I pull them up on You Tube. Both kids high tail it from wherever they are. Little boys dancing their tushes off. Swinging each other around, running and jumping on the couch, forgetting they hated each other two minutes ago. They dance like their mother, and will also never make a dance team. Thank God.

The song that represents the past year is I am Waiting by John Waller (from the Fireproof movie). The lyrics that most speak to me: "I am waiting, waiting on you Lord. And I am hopeful. Though it's not easy, faithfully I will wait. Though it is painful....patiently, I will wait." It is no secret to those that know us that this has been a difficult and emotional year. This song has been a stronghold and almost a mantra to me that I will serve You while I am waiting.

So what about you. What is on your soundtrack?

Special thanks to Cheryl from Mommypants for giving me the framework and idea for this post. I love her blog, so check it out!

The garden hose hung off the side as we approached, dripping water to the pavement below. Any dreams of balmy water filling the dunk tank was wishful thinking on Josh's part.

For the memory books, the temperature tonight was 65 degrees.

Still, he was a good sport and the dunk tank raised a lot of money for the school. $3 would buy you three throws, $5 an automatic button push. The line to dunk teachers, principals, and coaches was always at least ten deep. Wildly successful, said the board member taking the money.

Walking the plank to towards the dunk tank.