Ring The Bells

i am writing to tell you about a song. The song was not written by a famous artist. The band is not signed to a major label. i have listened to the song twenty times today. i listened to it three times in a row this morning, borrowed headphones plugged into a borrowed computer in a borrowed office. i cried for ten minutes straight. It is an awkward thing to be a grown-up crying in an office (especially someone else's and especially during business hours) and yet the thing i heard in the headphones came louder than the fear or shame i felt for crying. There was the sense that i was hearing something important, something that felt true to the deepest place in me. Who can say why we love something or feel something? i am certainly no authority but perhaps it starts with truth. There is something about hearing or seeing or feeling something that is true. 

My friend Steven lives in Los Angeles. He lives with his wife Danielle and their adorable baby boy Aiden. They chose Los Angeles and they remain in Los Angeles because there are songs inside of Steven. They stay also because of the people around them who not only believe in those songs, they know the cost and weight and stories of the songs. They live in a humble apartment that though close enough in miles, is far from Malibu and Mulholland. They have made it a home, made with things that can't be measured in square feet. It has been my privilege to get to know them over the last couple years, to learn their stories and to be loved by them. When i spend time with Steven and Danielle, i am certain that i am loved beyond anything that i could ever explain or earn or deserve. i am certain also that my friends are living a sacred story worthy of love songs and fight songs, a story rich with victory, defeat, sadness, forgiveness, laughter, depression, redemption, passion, pain and hope.

Peace to you tonight.
jamie

Find the words that make it right again
Calling birds help you make it through the night
It's just enough to find a way to open up again
and learn to taste all the beauty that's inside

The day you finally turn to dust
and finally hear your name
brings colors that will never fade away
Sometimes the best all of us 
can still break down  and still give up on love
but it's never gone