Sunday, March 7, 2010

WinterJam2010!!!

So last night we went to WinterJam. What's WinterJam? It is an awesome concert tour for Christians, a gathering of TONS of rocking Christian bands for really cheap! The music is amazing, there is always a great speaker, and there are always lots of people saved through the power of the music and the atmosphere of worship.

Last year there were several bands that rocked, including TobyMac and Hawk Nelson, plus Francesca Battistelli, Stephanie Smith, and Brandon Heath. The concert was awesome, and we were sure that when the next one rolled around we'd be going.

So this year the next one rolled around. It's 2010, and last night was the WinterJam concert. And we totally went!! We were missing Teenybop because she wanted to have movie night with Private Ryan's mom, but Private Ryan and I took our little Piglet with us and she had a great time. Imagine, nine months old, and after she got used to the ear plugs she was jammin' with the rest of us, even kicking her little legs and rocking her head to the music. She handled all the racket like a champ, and she cuddled up to her mommy during my favorite part.

This year's lineup was Revive, Robert Pierre, Sidewalk Prophets, Fireflight, NewSong, and NewsBoys. By that point our rockin' little Piglet had passed out in her chest carrier (my father called it "the papoose" which is funny because we have Native American heritage) so we left even though we were missing Third Day and Tenth Avenue North, two of my favorite bands. But the real treasure that I will carry with me was from when the Sidewalk Prophets played their set. Private Ryan had gone to get us some water from concessions, and Piglet and I were enjoying the show. Then this song came on ...



... and as I stood there with my little "papoose" cuddling up to me and I thought of my oldest daughter hanging out with her favorite grandma at home, I just cried as I sang these lyrics to my baby. There have been a lot of songs that make me think strongly of my daughters, they each have a certain song that just makes me think only of them, and there are "wish" songs for them that I hold dear in this heart of mine. This is one of them, and I struggled through the words while Piglet petted my cheeks and played innocently with her keys. But she listened as best she could through her ear plugs ... "Be strong in the Lord and never give up hope, you're gonna do great things, I already know ... God's got His hands on you so don't live life in fear, forgive and forget but don't forget why you're here ... Take your time and pray, these are the words I would say ..."

Right about the time the song was over and I was standing there proud of my ability to give birth to these two children in a world where so many women ache for babies and have not even one ... Right about the time I was feeling so in love with my children, and in love with my God for letting my borrow them for a while ... Right about the time I was feeling a little like a jack-ass for crying like a baby in public ... Private Ryan comes back from "the bathroom". Apparently they have a merchandise table in there (or else he sneaked around the concourse for some secret shopping), and he had bought me the Sidewalk Prophets CD, among others. The CD's I'm grateful for, but my favorite will always be that one ... the one that isn't just a CD from WinterJam 2010, but the one with a big, strong memory attached.