Today is my first day as a self-employed person.
That's right -- I finally quit my church job and I've opened my own music studio.
I'm excited and terrified all at once, but I know with absolute certainty that this is what God's leading me to do. I'm still about five students away from being able to breathe fairly easily, but I'm so unbelievably pumped about getting things started.
I know I haven't blogged in forever, but now that my mornings are less tied-down, I'm going to be on here way more.
I feel like a lifetime's worth of stuff has happened since I last posted anything here:
1. Of course, the big deal moment -- I turned in my resignation in May after a whole bunch of prayer. I actually went to Donald Miller's Storyline Conference in March, and it completely knocked me off the fence about the decision. I felt like every topic was aimed directly at me. I know this sounds very dramatic and cliche, but the conference was a life-changing moment for me. Lots of tears, prayers, and "YES!" moments. And yes, I'd still like to marry Donald Miller.
More than anything, the conference solidified what I've really known deep down my whole life -- I want to create - not just every once in a while, but all the time. I want to sing, write, play, and inspire. I want to get so absorbed in creating that I forget to eat dinner. I want to work with students and help them discover a passion for music -- I want to witness that amazing lightbulb moment when a kid realizes that they can play a song that they love and that it can sound the way it sounds in their heads. I want to be there when someone hears a song that changes the way they'll look at music forever.
I want to create.
2. I have a niece! Madelyn Grace was born on May 24th, and she's the sweetest, cutest baby ever. And I'm not biased at all.
3. Madelyn was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis in June. We were all shocked and devastated, and for a while, it felt like Madelyn had five names: "Madelyn Who Has Cystic Fibrosis." But she's undergone such an amazing transformation since her diagnosis (she's nearly doubled her weight in a month!), and she's such a smiling, laughing, happy baby that we've all begun to see her not as a "sick" baby (because she's really not at all since she's been taking her medication), but as just an adorable baby. I'm blown away by the grace and love that Alex and Holly Jo have shown every day since Madelyn's diagnosis. They're going to be (and are) the best parents ever.
4. I'm moving! To make a really long story short, since I'm going to be teaching music full-time from my home, this little apartment just wasn't going to cut it. In a "nothing else but God" moment, I actually met a lady at I-Hop (that's right - I-Hop) who happened to have a condo for rent that she hadn't even put on the market yet. And it's perfect. I move in about three weeks, and I can't wait to start decorating. I'll post lots of pictures soon.
5. I went on my first date in, oh, almost four years. It definitely wasn't love at first sight, and I don't think we're going out again, but hey, it's progress.
I feel like I'm beginning to actually live for the first time in a really long time. I can't wait to see what's coming.
1 comments:
Oh, congratulations! It's so nice to know I'm not the only one taking leaps lately. Despite the encouragement I've gotten, I still have moments of loneliness. Like people are congratulating me, but they're not leaping; they're still safely in their jobs that pay well and provide them with benefits. :) Anyway, so glad to know I'm not alone, and even more glad you're following your gut and telling a better story. Kudos to you. I hope this venture turns out to be a huge success, financially, yes, but even more important, emotionally and personally.
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