Teachers
July 18, 2011
I believe there are people that are put in your path to change your life, open up your heart and mind and really bring the best and worst out of you sometimes. I have been blessed to have a lot of great people that have changed my life for the better. For instance, if I would have never met my acting coach, John Homa when I was 15, I would never have broken through so many barriers as a performer, and a storyteller. I also wouldn't have had one of the most loyal and dedicated friends in my life either. He has a way of explaining things to me like no one else and pushes me far beyond what I believe I'm capable of.
If I'd never recently met Ilyse Baker I would have probably never really had the passion or freedom to dance again. She has made me feel powerful as a woman and makes me remember to always have fun, forget the perfection and own what you're doing. That has translated into many other parts of my life. I thought I was walking into a simple Equinox class, but I was walking into a moment of change and awareness or "unawareness." My first grade teacher Mrs. Louise Chaney let me be different and write in cursive instead of print. She never told me anything I did creatively was wrong, but encouraged my little quirks and differences. If I would have never met Darrell Brown I would have never opened up like I have with my songwriting. With Darrell, there's nothing that's off limits to talk about, nothing that can't be written, no rules. Once again, I also would have never met my friend 'soul mate'...and lucky for me, one of many I cherish. I turned down "Northern Lights" twice. I was coming off a very long tour and the last thing I wanted to do was film a movie in Canada. Well, most of you are very aware of what happened after that, my life changed.
I have learned so much over the past several years. I've loved beyond what I thought was possible, felt pain I never knew existed, felt shame, disappointment, I've been as selfish as one could have been, I've learned the lesson of pure selflessness, I've been broken down to nothing and built back up again, I've let go of fear and learned the power of life all because of the people and the experiences put in my path.
I mean, it's still wild to me that I have two "bonus boys" who teach me something new all the time. I am grateful for these wonderful people and to tell you the truth, I could go on and on about how I've been changed and what I've learned from so many, but I won't. I'll just say, "You never know when your life will take an unexpected turn and you never know who or what is going to ignite that flame inside you, teach you something about yourself and the world." Sometimes, it's not pretty, but there's beauty in the ugly and ugly in the beauty. I've learned to embrace it all, it's MY journey. I guess what I'm saying is embrace YOUR journey, keep your heart and eyes open and out of it all you will learn new things about yourself, you'll cultivate strength, courage, wisdom, faith... you'll hopefully learn the fine art of forgiveness of yourself and others sooner than later and you'll especially learn to laugh....mostly at yourself.
If I'd never recently met Ilyse Baker I would have probably never really had the passion or freedom to dance again. She has made me feel powerful as a woman and makes me remember to always have fun, forget the perfection and own what you're doing. That has translated into many other parts of my life. I thought I was walking into a simple Equinox class, but I was walking into a moment of change and awareness or "unawareness." My first grade teacher Mrs. Louise Chaney let me be different and write in cursive instead of print. She never told me anything I did creatively was wrong, but encouraged my little quirks and differences. If I would have never met Darrell Brown I would have never opened up like I have with my songwriting. With Darrell, there's nothing that's off limits to talk about, nothing that can't be written, no rules. Once again, I also would have never met my friend 'soul mate'...and lucky for me, one of many I cherish. I turned down "Northern Lights" twice. I was coming off a very long tour and the last thing I wanted to do was film a movie in Canada. Well, most of you are very aware of what happened after that, my life changed.
I have learned so much over the past several years. I've loved beyond what I thought was possible, felt pain I never knew existed, felt shame, disappointment, I've been as selfish as one could have been, I've learned the lesson of pure selflessness, I've been broken down to nothing and built back up again, I've let go of fear and learned the power of life all because of the people and the experiences put in my path.
I mean, it's still wild to me that I have two "bonus boys" who teach me something new all the time. I am grateful for these wonderful people and to tell you the truth, I could go on and on about how I've been changed and what I've learned from so many, but I won't. I'll just say, "You never know when your life will take an unexpected turn and you never know who or what is going to ignite that flame inside you, teach you something about yourself and the world." Sometimes, it's not pretty, but there's beauty in the ugly and ugly in the beauty. I've learned to embrace it all, it's MY journey. I guess what I'm saying is embrace YOUR journey, keep your heart and eyes open and out of it all you will learn new things about yourself, you'll cultivate strength, courage, wisdom, faith... you'll hopefully learn the fine art of forgiveness of yourself and others sooner than later and you'll especially learn to laugh....mostly at yourself.
