Like family

globe

Okay. I’m back. I’ve begrudgingly re-entered Real Life after being whisked away for a week in Never-Neverland – that is, a week in California with Gregory Alan Isakov and a related cast of characters.

You know the situation – LÄRABAR held a singer-songwriter contest and three artists won a chance to open for Greg – and since this project was my baby, I flew west to manage the shows. We started in San Diego, then moved up to LA, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco. We wound up the PCH, and I visited San Francisco for the first (but surely not the last) time. I got some much-needed quality time with my sister-in-law, Ashley. And all week long, I fell more and more head-over-heels for my new friends – the contest winners, the Kris Orlowski guys, and of course, Sir GAI and his band.

There is something about getting away from the day-to-day routine that snaps you out of bad habits and ruts. It opens up the horizon and awakens possibility. It reveals fears and insecurities and the places where you grasp for control. And as one of these dear new friends reminded me one night, the thing that you’re clinging most tightly to is probably the thing you most need to let go of.

He’s right, you know. The only way to receive anything is to open your hands.

I’m back in Denver now, and opening up Outlook crumpled my soul like a piece of paper. Email is a hazard of any job, I know – it just feels particularly cruel after such a rejuvenating time AWAY from it.

I’m so sad that this project is over. But last week slapped my heart awake, and I’m just really thankful that it happened at all. I can’t pretend to know how or why it made me feel this way, but here it is: I trust that there is so much good ahead.

In the meantime, check out the pictures from the shows, captured by the one and only Ashley Parsons:
San Diego
Santa Barbara
San Francisco

On Friday night when the goodbyes were happening and I was dreading walking away, Greg hugged me and said, “This feels like family.” And it did.

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4 Comments

  1. rachieannie on August 27, 2013 at 8:23 AM

    Love this!

    Awakenings are fraught with possibility, but painful at the same time. I often find that I dig deeper into the thing I need to get rid of, almost as a prolonged good-bye. Being a human is a funny experience.

  2. Leigh Kramer on August 27, 2013 at 8:59 AM

    YES. This is exactly what happened with my Uganda/Burundi trip. Excited to see what comes out of this for you, Annie.

  3. The Zadge on August 27, 2013 at 9:48 PM

    And trusting in your heart is so right – there IS so much good ahead for you, sweet Annie!

  4. Hitoshi on October 14, 2013 at 10:10 PM

    that band is super talented and super nice, so encouraging and kind. now I’m a fan of theirs as human beings. it was so bittersweet for me when the weekend tour was done and we had to part ways. on that small part of your experience, I can definitely identify.

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