“But I will say this about Texas.
I met kindred hearts.
I met gentle souls.
And I most definitely cried.”
And here we are.
I’m finally ready to tell you about “Silobration” 2016 at Magnolia Market. And what it was like for my soul, my heart, and my ears to hear Johnnyswim play live from a front row, under open skies in Waco, Texas.
Years ago, I found myself on the road documenting a touring indie musician. We all stayed in Texas for a day and then made our way across the rest of the country.
That time spent in Texas was a bit complicated. And it somehow left a bitter taste in mouth.
And with that, I never looked back at the Lone Star state again.
Until a couple years ago…
I found myself enamored by the lifestyle and show of “Fixer Upper”. It became a sort of calming constant presence in my life. And much of the lifestyle and design of the show reminded me of home, and my own hometown, specifically the good bits that I loved.
And then late last year, out of the blue, one of my bosses offered me a contract job in Texas--of all places.
I thought it could be a fun new opportunity---the job, but not necessarily the locale.
And at that time, I hadn’t put two and two together-- that “Fixer Upper” was filmed in Texas.
It wasn’t until about a month before I was to leave for this new job, did I make the connection. And at that point, I just about flipped out.
But my job ended up being about an hour and half away from where Fixer Upper was filmed, and my schedule became cray, as it usually does when I'm working a show. So I knew it would be next to impossible to actually make my way up there to crash an episode.
But in the midst of all that hustle, I just felt a still whisper...
"Don’t worry, you can come back."
And I thought, am I really going to plan a vacation trip to Texas—mostly to stalk the filming crew of this HGTV show? I mean, who does that? Well my amazing little sister-friend and I. She was on board and ready for this adventure before I could get the full question out.
And so we went.
We flew out with no idea of how the adventure would play out.
Meanwhile, throughout all of 2016 (Actually years before..but who's counting), I had been cyber stalking Johnyswim every moment I could on Instagram because #CoupleGOALS and their posts are life. Seriously, go look:
That second Texas trip was pivotal.
It became the fortuitous circumstance that would lead me to see Johnnyswim live a few months later.
But that second Texas trip though.
My travel buddy and I basically road tripped it across all of Texas—Okay, not all of Texas (that state is Huge), but we ventured from Dallas to Houston to Austin to Waco and some cities in between.
Oddly enough, Waco was our very last stop.
And we happened to book a tour of the city of Waco.
My Texas friends thought I was nuts.
“Wacko does tours??”
“What’s there to even see?”
All the while, I just smiled.
Because you and I both know, I wasn’t there to just see the city of Waco.
I was hoping to possibly drool over seeing an actual Fixer Upper House…the thing that stood as a reminder to me that life can be rich and full of love and family, faith, and simple things. A reminder, that peace still exists, even in our crazy wacked out world.
Oh, and to possibly get swooped up by some tall, dark and handsome cowboy in dem streets.
Come on guys, don’t act like you don't know me…
Anyway.
That tour ended up being life changing.
I exaggerate not.
My tour happened to host a newspaper editor who would be covering our experience in the city paper and a videographer who was putting together a promo video for this new touring company.
Because yes, here’ the digital form of that newspaper article: LINK
And here’s the promo video: LINK
Cut to:
Tour ends, we make life long friends. And I’m not even quite sure how this all even happened so fast, but it did.
I mean, yes, our tour guides Luke and David are legitimate HGTV stars. Both of their houses were featured on Fixer Upper. And I’m still geeked out to call them friends. But look, I’m trying to play it cool guys.
Playing. It. COOL...
And before we left Waco, Luke (who’s also a pastor with a beautiful family) prayed for us.
And I don’t mean those cute short prayers. I mean those intercessory prayers that leave the receiver looking like a beautiful snotty mess. #Me
And in the midst of that prayer, I was welcomed to the city.
And I thought that was interesting and strikingly odd, but it felt right.
And then we flew back to Los Angeles.
And I felt a spark in my heart.
And I told my little sister-friend, I want to see where this spark goes, if anywhere…
“I think I want to go back…”
And I saw the twinkle in her eye.
We bought our plane tickets to Texas, roughly 2 days after just coming back from Texas.
Because you know I love adventure and a good mystery, and this trip brought forth both.
A few weeks after buying our plane tickets, Magnolia Market announced they would be doing a “Silobration” – an event with music, food, crafts, art, etc. Marking the year anniversary of their new property and headquarters.
#Tears
And then, it was announced that Johnnyswim would be playing at this magical event.
HERE FOR THIS.
And then I write that blog post:
We flew into Dallas early that morning, so early that it was still dark. And not only dark, but it was raining sheets, like literally sheets of rain.
But I was like, nope, NOT TODAY. Nothing will make me miss getting to Waco to hear Johnnyswim. So we cranked up the Little Mermaid soundtrack and continued on our way.
We drove almost 2 hours to get through the rain and into town. And then we finally made it to our cute hotel.
We crashed for about a few hours and then headed down to the “Silos” where the concert was going to take place (because yes, we flew in the day of the concert - #crazy).
There was a beautiful vendor faire at the Silos as well, with tons of inspired products.
My eyes were drunk with delight.
These were some of my gems that I bought:
When inside the Silos grounds, the lawn in front of the stage was already full of people. Like hundreds of people.
I was a little shocked.
We had gotten there about an hour early, but it still didn’t seem early enough.
I scanned the crowd and the front of the stage to see if there was an empty pocket for the two of us to squeeze into.
There was.
There was a small empty section right near the front row. But we needed to walk around the crowd--towards audience left. And so we did, but before we got there, a beautiful surprise engagement happened in front of us.
I smiled.
Then we bee-lined it to the front row.
And I exhaled with relief.
This was finally going to happen.
It felt so good and perfectly timed.
And shortly after the wait, Johnnyswim walked on stage.
Amanda (also referred to as Gracie) is absolutely stunning. Not just in pictures, But. In. Real. Life.
She’s beautifully subtle, yet with a commanding presence like thunder.
And her other half, Abner, is the sort of pillar she can lean on with wreckless abandon. Yes, he is that supportive in their interactions on stage.
I watched – we all watched the way they looked at, and looked for one another during their songs and in between the space of songs.
This is the substance of great romance stories.
Never stop looking at and for your other. Even when they become yours.
There’s always more of the mystery to unravel—always.
And then, unexpectedly, they decided to add a song to their set that wasn’t initially planned.
And I felt as if God orchestrated something miraculous on my behalf.
Because the lyrics to the song they added to their set -- “Georgica Pond”, left me ugly crying in the front row, feeling as free as bird and so absolutely seen by God.
“….So if you're ever like me
Daydreaming how different this life would be
If the ones you loved most hadn't take their leave
And wishing your babies could know your daddy and me
Know that I'm still your lighthouse, yea I'm still you're lighthouse
And I'll be your lighthouse, you'll be one for me….”
Video Link: https://youtu.be/58-b3YhDTJM
Because my first time hearing Johnnyswim live would of course occur after such a poignant time in my life—after the passing of my dad just a couple months prior.
But God knew.
And I was in Texas.
And my dad was a cowboy at heart.
And dreams
Are
Never
Forgotten
By
God.
It would appear as if dreams are truly an outworking of a redemption story. But to note, the very essence of redemption means that there must be something to be redeemed.
There must be some sort of struggle present. In other words, a conflict of sorts, but a beautiful surrender to the hope of a better story.
A death that leads to a resurrection. A doubt turned over to faith. A labor that brings forth a delivery.
And yes, something to be turned from it’s painfully glaring dullness to its gleamingly bright light.
Thank you, sweet Texas for the memories and the redemption story.
Carry on.
Wisdom’s Knocking:
Galadriel:
And for you, Frodo Baggins, I give you the light of Earendil our most beloved star.
May it be a light to you in dark places when all other lights go out.