Never been so happy to see a Friday, people! After a *very* long week (and a lot of late nights), this has been a pretty amazing & lovely Friday night of no plans, a homemade dinner and mindless TV watching. Perfect!
It was so difficult to come off the high of last night's performance that I couldn't sleep at all (which made for a pretty rough day, today). But it's okay -- it was totally worth it! It was probably one of my favorite shows to date. There was this incredible energy in the room, we had a great turn-out, and it was so amazing to finally have other musicians to collaborate with again. It was definitely one of those nights that remind me of Dreams realized.
Because there was a time when I didn't live in New York -- I barely dared to dream it -- and the idea of standing on a stage in this city before a live audience definitely terrified the pants off me. But somehow I did dare to dream. And Caffe Vivaldi was one of the first "New York gems" I discovered upon landing here.
It was the winter of '05 and I was living in Jersey but coming into the city every chance I could get to check out open mics and scout out live music venues. I stopped by Vivaldi on a Monday night and sat in a window seat by myself, nursing a hot apple cider. As I sat there listening to various singer-songwriters do their thing -- the thing I so wanted to be doing -- I remember it started to snow. And it was just so perfect. So beautiful. Such a classic New York scene that made my heart swell. Here I was, a wannabe musician, a wannabe New Yorker, sitting alone in a candlelit cafe in the heart of the Village. And I decided right then and there that a) I would live in Manhattan, by golly, and b) I would play a show at Caffe Vivaldi one day. It took a little while but I was in Manhattan by summer of '06 and playing regular shows at Vivaldi by '08. (!!) And now I've played so many shows there that it feels familiar. Comfortable.
After the show was over last night, I sat at a table in the back by the fireplace along with Dan and all of my lovely, supportive friends who had come out, and it really struck me: this is it. My dreams playing out, right here, right now! And I don't just mean musically. I think about that girl sitting alone in the window seat five years ago, and then look around at all of the people & love surrounding me. Such support. So many dreams come true. It is amazing (truly amazing!) to think of all that has happened in five years. I am so grateful to New York for being everything I thought it could be (and more), but even more grateful to God for making it all happen. Last night really brought that realization home: dreams can sometimes take a little while, but [insert cliché phrase here, ie: they're worth the wait! ... they really DO come true! ... we can make it happen!]. I think you know what I mean. :)
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1 comment:
Beautifully articulated. I am so proud of you and all that you have achieved. Your journey has been amazing and you are amazing.
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