The Katy Perry California Dreams Adventure!

(Yes, I suck at coming up with blog titles.)
I think it's really funny, and amazingly awesome, that we got to see The Band Perry and Katy Perry in the same year. Of course, the circumstances both times were considerably different, not to mention their styles of music couldn't differ more. Also, Katy Perry isn't really her name, but I read she's actually Katy Hudson. Still, it's fun to think about this and muse about how amazingly lucky I am.
I've decided never to doubt anything my mom ever says...again. She said we were going to see Katy Perry, but since we were in Peru at the time I thought all the tickets would be sold out by the time we got home. That was not the case. There were still decent seats available, and I could see the whole stage perfectly well. My mom makes things happen. I'm not sure how she does it. She's just awesome, that's all I know.
The concert was well-choreographed and basically a work of art. There were so many costumes and for each song it was different. It followed the Alice in Wonderland/Candyland theme--I think there was almost a little bit of Cinderella in there, too. On the screen between songs they played bits of this movie where she's in costume and she walks around this really cool land made of candy, searching for her Kitty, and having adventures. It reminded me of the Taylor Swift concert I saw a couple of years ago, where for each song she had a different set, and it was simply magnificent. I'll share photos from that later.
My favorite song she played in this concert was E.T. because you could feel the beat here more than in any of the other tracks. There were green and blue lasers reaching wide over the crowd, making you feel like you were in a science fiction movie. I wish I'd been able to get a good picture of that, but I was too busy singing along, so that's fine. I was enjoying myself and if I'd spent the whole concert taking pictures, then I would have missed the whole thing--and that wouldn't be much fun at all.

This really was an adventure. It was almost perilous. Here's the suspenseful summary of how it was action-packed and nerve-racking at first:
I went with my mom, dad, and my brother. I had the greatest time with them. I had quite an adventure trying to get four bottles of water to them. For some reason the guys at the food place just had to take the caps off the bottles, so... Picture Mariella stumbling through a crowded arena and trying to figure out how to get back into the row where her family is sitting, that is really narrow and where it's easy to fall down.
Well, there were some kind people who helped me pass down the bottles of water to my family. They said, "Need us to help you pass something down, sweetheart?" Probably because they saw me looking so pathetic with the four bottled waters calling to my family who couldn't hear me because of the music going on at the moment. So we called until my parents looked up and received the bottles of water--and then I finally went back to my seat, the chances of falling and dying having been slimmed. But I wasn't going to be able to last the whole concert without any water. We'd gone up three flights of stairs and my tongue literally felt like paper. How was I ever going to sing along if my tongue felt like paper?!
Aside from that, I wore some nice ballet flats that I thought would look good with my sequined shirt, but I forgot that for something like a concert ballet flats are not the most comfortable kind of shoes to wear. Next time Katy Perry comes I think I could get away with wearing fluffy bunny slippers! ♥ It would fit the theme and I think that if I dress up in my pajamas I might be able to make the Meet-and-Greet. I will start shopping for the perfect bunny slippers now.

Yesterday was, in fact, my brother Christian's 14th birthday. This concert was his birthday present. I think we all had fun and I'm glad he had a nice birthday. I know I enjoyed myself as well. It was an adventure.
Thank you so much, Mom, for proving me wrong. I'm never going to doubt you again.
(Honestly. My mom does amazing and crazy things! I want to be like her!)

I have a friend. She's been in a dusty closet for several months now...

Cecelia.

Her name is Cecelia.She doesn't talk--not really. I mean, unless you know how to understand the language of music, then you can say that she talks a lot.She's named for the patroness of music, St. Cecilia, who also happens to be my patron saint (Cecilia is my middle name) and of whom I have a relic medal--one of the few I think even exist. There are many reasons why I have a devotion to St. Cecilia, but music wasn't always one of them.
Her story is truly a remarkable one:

It is believed that St. Cecilia was born in the 2nd or 3d century A.D., although the dates of her birth and martyrdom are unknown. A religious romance telling the love story of Saint Cecilia and Valerian appeared in Greece during the 4th century A.D., and there is a biography of St Cecilia dating from the 5th century A.D. She is purported to have been the daughter of a wealthy Roman family, a Christian from birth, who was promised in marriage to a pagan named Valerian. Cecilia, however, had vowed her virginity to God, and wore sackcloth, fasted and prayed in hopes of keeping this promise. Saint Cecilia disclosed her wishes to her husband on their wedding night. She told Valerian that an angel watched over her to guard her purity. He wanted to see the angel, so St. Cecilia sent him to Pope Urban(223-230). Accounts of how and when Valerian saw the angel vary, but one states that he was baptized by the Pope, and, upon his return to Saint Cecilia, they were both given heavenly crowns by an angel. Another version recounts that Tibertius, Valerian's brother, sees the crowns and he too is converted.

Saint Cecilia

This isn't some sentimental blog post about how I'm a natural born musician and music is my passion and I spend so many hours a day mastering a new song that I wrote. This isn't even a blog post about me being really good at music, because I'm not. Quite frankly, I fail at music. I rarely practice and I'm better at composing things than reading notes for songs that already exist. I have little patience for sharps and flats on the piano and most of the time I just play ignoring them, thus messing up the song, and I have no idea what level I am at the piano even though supposedly I've been 'playing' for a few years now and should be at least okay at it.
But tonight...
Cecelia the guitar was a present for my 16th birthday. I'm not really sure why I wanted a guitar because back then I couldn't imagine the thrill of plucking a string and feeling the sound vibrate inside of you. I guess...well, I don't know. I just wanted a guitar. So that's what I got. 
And I've used her on and off to play a few songs I like, mostly Taylor Swift (there was a time that I'd mastered the intro to White Horse but I'm sure I've forgotten it by now. It was a very tentative mastery and right after that is when I had to leave Cecelia to go to Peru.) I tried to learn Miranda Lambert but that was a little too hard. My teacher was youtube, and I had nobody to really assess how I learned and what progress I made, or tell me how I had to improve.
We left to Peru on February because of my Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I had to put Cecelia away. Even though I was never really big on playing music, I felt my heart recoil into itself as I eased her into the guitar case and whispered, "Just for now. See you soon." And I put her in the closet, where she's waited about four months for me to come back.
I've been here for a month but while settling in, had little time to play music. Tonight's when I finally felt done with waiting. I've got a cough, some kind of allergic asthma that I hope will go away when the summer's over. The Band Perry, my new favorites to listen to, made me want to sing. I listened to their beautiful song, Walk Me Down The Middle, and wished so badly that I could sing along. But every time I open my mouth to make a sound, I cough. I can't sing. I needed to make music tonight, though, needed it as badly as I normally have to write.
I could have used the piano, but then I remembered that I still had a friend waiting for me in the closet. So I got Cecelia out.
You know how sometimes you wish there was a soundtrack to your life? Well, as I eased Cecelia out of the guitar case, hearing the sounds of the strings vibrating as they collided with the plastic that confined her for so long, I promise you there was music playing. A soundtrack. And it's something that I could never imagine--the anticipation, the satisfaction, the immense joy that I was getting her out again. I was seeing her again. She wasn't angry, either. She was ready to play music, just like me.
The guitar is probably out of tune--I was never too good at tuning her. I sat down and played, anyway. I played with the capo, putting it on different frets and just plucking strings. Then, when the capo was on the third fret, I plucked out something that almost sounded like a song. And it was pretty. Like I said, the guitar is probably out of tune, but I was actually playing something that sounded like a song and a pretty one. I played the tune over and over.
Since I've no idea how to record guitar notes on sheet music, my only way to not lose the song was recording it. I got out my iPhone and used the Voice Memo app. I set it on a table nearby and talked to the phone and played and wrote a song.
I could share that thing I recorded on here but since the guitar is probably out of tune...I dunno. I'll consider it.
GOD is doing it. He's making me feel like I can do anything. I can write a song. I can run a blog. I can write a book and get it to the top 5 and eventually publish it. I can change opinions with my stories. I can be a good friend and someone that others will look up to, regardless of my weaknesses. I can make a difference.
And I can do anything. I know it. He wants me to say it.
I'm probably not going to start a band or write an album that will top the charts (maybe. Just because I'm not planning on it doesn't mean GOD isn't. I've learned better than to try and map my own life.) But I have art, I have Truth, and even though my hands hurt--even though I hate bedtime because of sleeping with the wrist braces on, and sometimes I can't open a can of soda, and sometimes I wonder if I can truly carry out all these things I'm planning for myself if I can't even write a book as fast as I used to--He keeps sending me things that He wants written.
He wants me to write things.He wants me to say things.He wants me to play the guitar and piano even though I don't follow the rules and I'm bad at it.So I will, and I'll learn to just trust in the LORD because He wouldn't be sending me these things if He didn't know what He was doing. And He's not going to harm me. And everything that happens to me is for my own good.
I need to shut up, stop whining, and just trust.
You know? Lately He's been revealing to me a lot on the subject of love. Not romantic love, but the love we have in our nature. I'll be sharing this as I go. It's liberating.
He has plans for me, even though I can't see them, and I don't believe I can do much with hands that are already hurting after just a blog post. Even though I need sharpening every time I make a difference in this world, because I'm just a really blunt tool. Even though I tend to be narrow-minded and paranoid and way too shy.
Kari Jobe is one of the people who inspire me most. Today on Facebook, she said in a status update:
Sometimes the key to trusting is to just trust.
I want to be like Kari Jobe with my writing. Her album is a blessing and for a long time I listened to it as a lullaby before bed. It was like falling asleep to a prayer. I've yet to find music as beautiful as hers, and I just want her to release a new album already. I want to meet her. I want to ask her so many questions. I want to hear her perform My Beloved live.
Listen to her album. Follow her on Facebook. She deserves more attention, and everyone should feel the blessing of her music.
How do I be like her with writing? How do I use writing in such a gorgeous way to glorify a GOD so beautiful? All my plots I come up with--even the 'religious' ones--fail. They're like matches that are put out by a gust of wind.
I'll just trust. That's what I'll do. If I leave my gifts to GOD, He'll help me.
But prayers would be appreciated. It's easier to say I'll trust, than it is to actually do it...because I'm still human.
Thanks, my friends. ♥

Browsing on Twitter, I found the same verse--just different translations--twice in a row.I guess it means something. Maybe this is a thing I'm supposed to know right now.I can do anything. :) Thank you, Jesus!

In Which Mariella Updates You On Her Progress Coming Out Of The Jar

This morning I had a lovely experience. Since I guess I'm an Insomniac at heart even without trying to be, I can't fall asleep too well. So I was up quite late--or early, if you want to put it that way--and decided that well, if I'm going to stay awake I may as well do something useful with my time. I decided to start reading my copy of the Youcat again. I'd gotten it a while back but only skimmed it, and not made it very far into the first chapter. This time I read the foreword written by the Pope and tried my hardest to pay attention to every little word, because they're all valuable in a book like this.

If you read the foreword, you'll see that the Youcat isn't just a book. It's a project several years in the making and its purpose was to clarify what Christians (or Catholics, if you want to see it in a narrow way) should believe. It's the result of the bishops of the Church working together. They came from all different parts of the world; their lifestyles varied and their languages did, too. But together they wrote for us a book that will clear up so much and after just a skim I have to say that any Catholic interested in learning about their faith, or any Christian wanting to learn about Catholicism, should give this book a try. It's interesting, easy to read, and written specifically for the youth of today's world.
Our youth need something to set us on fire with faith and this book is an attempt to do just that.
Anyway, in the foreword, the Pope wrote:

This Catechism will not make life easy for you, because it demands of you a new life. (Youcat, page 10)

That sentence really spoke to me, so I closed the book right here and got out a notebook. I hadn't written in my journal yet, and all I had nearby was one of those cool yellow notepads, but it would have to do. I quoted this line from the Youcat...and then I just started writing.
I don't know if I want to share the things I write when I get into real deep Jesus mode. It makes me feel really raw and vulnerable. Being human, I don't want to be raw or vulnerable. I want to be strong and impressive, somebody that others can look up to. After reading an article today, though, I realized that there's no reason why people can't look up to me if I'm not strong and impressive--it might be just another reason for people to look up to me--but that's an issue for another blog post.
Without further ado, I'm going to swallow my pride and share what Jesus wanted me to share. I think I'll be sharing a lot more from now on.

This Catechism will not make life easy for you, because it demands of you a new life.   p. 10

Don't I kind of start a new life every single day? I am constantly going to sleep with the resolve that I am changed; that I'll pray more; that I will use my gifts to serve the LORD only. And every day I fail. And every night I start over again.

Does Jesus ever get angry or frustrated with me? Does He ever stop and think, "Well, maybe she'll always be a blunt tool; I can't do much with her; she makes one impact on the world and then needs sharpening again!"

If He does, and since He loves me anyway--well, I can truly do anything. I find all my hope in the fact that I'm such a hopeless case but He still loves me...and He somehow wants me so much. There is nowhere I can go to hide from this, either, even if I wanted to. He loves me and He wants me and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it--but the wise choice would be to respond and accept it.

Because the wise thing to do if someone loves you, the good and beautiful response, is to love back. But the beauty of love is another subject altogether, one that I feel like I'll be uncovering soon.

I have value in Him...so much value. But only in Him can I ever do anything with it!

I wrote this at about 5am so any grammar mistakes or the likes cannot be blamed on me. I wrote it by hand in the little notepad. Now I don't know if what I wrote is right, but to me it feels right--at least, applying it to my situation specifically. This is something He said to Me. Maybe He's saying it to you, too--just ask and listen!
What I really want to point you to is the part in bold-face typing: But the beauty of love is another subject altogether, one that I feel like I'll be uncovering soon.
After I finished writing this in my notebook, I opened the Youcat again, finished the foreword, and started on the first chapter. I found this: (Since it's a lot to type up I'm just going to take a picture of the page I want to quote.)

It was like a direct response to what I wrote in my journal entry before that. So, I wrote another journal entry:

We were made out of love. It's in our fiber. It's our purpose. We don't need an explanation beyond that, really, as to why humans love and why it's so hard to describe different types of love and it doesn't even really have to make sense, either. We were made out of 'leftover love'; therefore, we love.

It's one of those instances in which we can't explain why we do something; we just do.

I put away my journal and decided to go outside to watch the sun rise, since I was awake anyway. I stood there and gazed at the sky and contemplated it.

Jesus is love...He loves me so much...I'm made out of love...love is my instinct...

It felt like I finally knew my purpose, what I was here for, and I got an idea of just how valuable I really am.

I felt so much joy at that moment. I was in pajamas but I danced around the back yard for five minutes.I feel like Jesus was there dancing with me.
Then I finally went to bed...But I still didn't fall asleep for an hour. (Needless to say, I slept very little and am a bit groggy right now.)
I'm being called back to love, called back to Christ, and told what my purpose is. Gradually, I'm learning what I've got to do with my life. It's like a summer romance but way above that. This summer is being great for me, not because I have some earthly love story that'll probably end in a break-up when the winter comes. I stopped worrying about that kind of romance, since I don't think those are in His plans for me anytime soon to begin with.
No, this summer is a love story to me because I'm learning who I am in GOD's eyes.Jesus is helping me out of my jar.And I know I can truly do anything.
Thanks for following me on my journey so far :) ♥

WHOA. That was unexpected.

It happened. Like, in one second. The entire plot for Beautiful Dancing changed.

 

Or did it? I'm starting to wonder if it ever had a plot. If it's ever going to have a plot at all. Pauly's a liar, a blatant liar and she can't stop. It feels like this book is just a lie, and it's getting all these pretty covers and things...

 

I've told a few of my friends the plans I had for this book and everything. But everything you may know about it now has changed. In just the blink of an eye, what was isn't and what isn't...well, that isn't either. It's all one big lie.

 

Can I pull it off?

 

I don't know how long this book is going to be. It's up to the book. But I'm not making any more goals ahead of time.

 

I'm excited. I'm on fire to write it now.

In which Mariella's mom gets her an iPhone.

And I show off the signature Jenn made me for the first time! You'll find it at the bottom of this blog post. It's really pretty. I love the umbrella and the butterflies.
I don't know if anyone really cares, but since it's my blog I'll say it anyway: I've been really feeling awful because of a cough that came with allergies and brought along with it an asthma attack. So I've been dealing with that cough for a few days now, and though it's getting better (thanks to my amazing mom who takes such care of me and she's the absolute best! ♥) it's still an annoying cough. I had to go to the doctor because I couldn't breathe well and my heart was beating way too fast. So yeah, that was a very long day. I came back breathing and feeling better, but still with a cough that's way annoying.
I've had a rough past two days because of this cough. I can barely talk--my voice is really hoarse. I know, I know...at least I can talk. And one good thing is that I can stay around in my pajamas and just finish up a bunch of things. I've made a lot of progress on arranging the ESCAPISM blog. I had a ton of help from friends and contributors who gave me ideas, their bios, and Syd made me a banner. I can't wait till tomorrow, when I can make the introductory blog post. I've been planning this since May and it's exciting to finally see it coming together and shaping up to resemble the masterpiece it's meant to be. If you guys still want to participate, we're always hiring for contributors, and all you have to do right now is let me know.
Also, my mom is so amazing that she got me an iPhone. The kind with all the apps. And I can listen to Pandora radio on it. And store pictures. And it makes chatting really epic. And I can listen to iTunes music on it. My mom is the best. I can't begin to describe how lucky I am to have her; I don't know what I'd do without her. She's my best friend and always will be.
So, from now on you'll probably be talking to me or texting me via an iPhone. I'll check my blogs on the iPhone. It's all iPhone.
I'm all hi-tech now. I've got the nookColor, which is a totally epic eBook reader and I love. It's got a big screen and it's easier to type blog posts in than perhaps an iPhone would be. Then there's the iPhone that's both phone and iPod at once. (Yes, I'm totally having a bragging moment here.) The nookColor has a pink rubber cover on it, and the iPod has a blue one. I'll get pictures!
Also, I thought I'd share with you guys my reading list for the rest of the summer. Here they are, and I might check them off in the sidebar as I go: (Some of them are really complicated to read, so wish me luck with that!)

1. Kissed by an Angel
2. The Essential Works of Christian Mysticism
3. Teresa of Avila
4. Go Ask Alice
5. The Memory Keeper's Daughter
6. The Reformation
7. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
8. Lord, Have Mercy
9. The Disreputable History of Frankie London-Banks
10. I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist
11. The Summer I Turned Pretty
12. Augustine
13. Beastly
14. The Prince of Tides
15. The Forgotten Garden

And more that I don't have around me at this immediate moment but definitely need to get read.

LATER...

I've added some tabs to my blog, as well, so it resembles more of a website. I don't know, I'm just having a lot of fun with this. I hope you enjoy sifting through here because this blog is going to my my attempt at being more personal than ever. The I LOVE... page is where I brag about people. Literally. I just feel called to tell people about the great things I have in my life, and the people I love, so I'm organizing all those posts into a page.

It didn't work out trying to get more followers by blogging as a professional blogger. Now I'm going to try and get more followers by being me, because I'm the only one who can. And I'm me for a reason. So here's my blog.

Thanks for coming and happy July! (I started this blog post on June and finished it on July. ^^)

JESUS: The Perfect Gentleman

...for everything that becomes visible is light.

Therefore, it says: "Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light."

Ephesians 5:14, NAB

http://weheartit.com/entry/11169206

I have always believed Ephesians 5 to be the perfect example of the mission one ought to set for their life. It's beautiful, it's comforting...it has always set me on fire for my life in a manner different from what other passages can do. No matter how many times I read it, or how many times I am going to read it, my reaction to it will always be the same: It makes me realize my self-worth. It reminds me that in Christ I will always be so much more than you see on the outside. I can shine if I choose to. I can live as a child of The Ultimate Light that brings joy and peace to the whole world. Though nobody can shine as brightly as He does, we can shine enough to help bring light to our own world.

A couple of days ago, there was a thunderstorm. It was the biggest, most epic thunderstorm I have ever seen in my life. It made me afraid at first, then I decided I was overreacting. I remarked jokingly to a friend, losing my mind for just a moment, "Wow, god must be really angry to send us a thunderstorm like this." Perhaps at that moment I was thinking of the Greek god Zeus, because on retrospect I know that our own GOD loves us too much. I just cannot imagine Him sending a storm like that out of anger. He could, but do you think He would?

My friend Jenn promptly put me in my place with her reply. "Or maybe He's putting on this really great show because He loves you so much."

I felt a little bit embarrassed at my own remark. She was so right. "Yeah," I replied thoughtfully, "I think that's it."

But it was only later that I would realize how right she was. I went to the window to watch the thunderstorm. Since at that moment the lightning was taking place behind the house where I could not see it, I instead listened to the thunder and wondered...

I had read a post on someone's Tumblr moments ago about the love of Jesus being a perfect love. No gentleman could beat Him--He is the Holy One, the Hero Who died for us and then defeated death. He created the universe. He is so big. What did I do to deserve such love from Him that He would put on the thunderstorm of such magnitude because He loves me that much?

I have done nothing to deserve this. If this is a love story, I am the ragged beggar with nothing to boast of, and He is the glorious knight Who loves me when there is nothing I can ever offer Him at all.

But the saddest part is, I no longer pray as often as I ought. It took a thunderstorm for Jesus to get me off the computer and to the window where we can talk and spend some time together.

He is so big, but with the worldly things dominating my mind, I BLIND MYSELF TO HIM!

HE DOES NOT DESERVE THIS, to be 'throwing stones at my window,' so to speak, just to get me to look at Him.

But you know what is so beautiful about this story? He forgave me. He forgives all of us in a manner that a normal gentleman never could. He keeps coming back when I forget Him. He keeps giving me chance after chance when I, the ragged beggar, have done nothing to earn it. I don't deserve it. Neither do you. We never will, but Jesus doesn't see that.



http://weheartit.com/entry/11155738
Need help getting out of your jar you put yourself in?
Just ask GOD. He'll open it for you.
But only if you tell Him you want to get out. Are you
having fun in the jar with the common butterflies, or do
you want to be free?

 He loves us more than we could ever possibly imagine. More than we can love Him back. More than a human guy can love us. Why does he love us?

There is no reason. He just does.

I will put my all into loving Him back as much as I can with the tiny human heart I have. He died for me. I do not want to leave Him waiting out a window for me to come speak with Him through the glass. Either I let Him in to be with me, or I come out to be with Him.

To do either of those, I need to pray. To do either of those, GOD needs to help me. He needs to open the jar of worldly things I put myself in, and then give me the courage to climb through and be with Him.

Take, for example, the gorgeous photo of these butterflies being let out of their jar. They have probably been put on display for being beautiful. Maybe a couple of them showed off so someone caught them in a net. One might have done it on purpose to become famous. Maybe they were born in a little cage and have never seen freedom but from an outside source. They were put on a shelf, and people stared at them and said, "Look! What pretty butterflies! See how they have wings?"

They have wings, but if they're in a jar to show off, can they really fly like they're meant to?

Similarly, I might have light, but if I'm stuck in a worldly box with just a little window, can I really shine like I want to?

What I have to do is ask, "GOD, please open this jar...I desire so strongly to be with You and fly by Your side among the saints and angels in heaven. But I can't open this jar I put myself in without Your help. It's closed too tightly...I can't open it."

You can ask this, too. And guess what? He will open it. But only if you tell Him you want to be by His side...and not with the other butterflies in the jar who prefer to be distant from Him.

It's up to you. It's up to me. Where do you want to be?

At the window, we talked about Ephesians 5. He told me that if I wanted to be a child of light, if I wanted to shine, I need only ask. If I wanted to get out of the jar of worldly things, He can take me up to the sky where I can shine like nothing you've ever seen before. He can make me brighter than the stars. So I asked Him to open the window tonight, after a couple of days contemplating what happened. Right now I'm in the process of climbing hesitantly through the window, thinking--what if I fall?

The thing is, I might be going through that process all my life, but I know that He's helping me through the window, so what have I to fear? And the least I can do is love Him with everything I've got. So I'm going to risk climbing through that window!

Guess what? He can make you shine, too. He's PERFECT! Better than a hero in a novel or anyone that will ever exist. And He wants you! How amazing is that?

So my question now is this: Do you love Jesus with everything you've got? Or are you going to make Him throw stones at your window?

Does He deserve that?

Don't you want to get out of the jar of worldly things and become radiant like a star in the heavens? Are you going to ask GOD to open the jar? Are you scared to fall out the window? Jesus will catch you.

Think about it.

My Memoir On Meeting The Band Perry On My Way Home From Peru

A photo of what happened after I got some courage
and went to say hi to them in the airport.

So. I knew the day I flew back home after so long would be amazing, but I didn't think it would be this amazing. I've already drafted a huge, long blog post about this but it's practically a short story so I'll try to tell about what happened on June 16 in a manner that's not boring and not rambling...otherwise it'll take up the entire blog.

At the Denver airport, I saw some people that looked vaguely familiar but I figured that I was so tired after the two long flights that I was seeing things. I hate the Denver airport. It's so huge and frustrating. There couldn't be people here, among all the strangers that were walking past, that I knew or had even heard about before in my life. Yet, I looked at these people again; I couldn't help it. Then it occurred to me where I must have seen them before--who it was that they reminded me of so strongly.

"No," I thought, turning away in disbelief. "I'm definitely hallucinating. It can't be them."

But my imagination always gets the best of me, so it wouldn't let me forget. Once we boarded the plane, I grabbed my backpack and--ignoring exclamations from my mother and brother asking what I was doing--I dug out my iPod. I only had one picture to judge off of at that very moment, and it was the album art in my iPod.

The EP I checked to make sure it was them.

(The one I looked at in the airplane was the EP that I am showing right here.)

And I studied it. And glanced up at the three people (but couldn't see them well because they were several rows ahead of us.) And showed the iPod to my mom and brother and told them my suspicions. It was my mom who told me that the people were pretty clearly The Band Perry.

"They look exactly alike!" she told me with total certainty. "They even have the same hairstyles!"

What followed was the most agonizing plane ride of my life. I tried to think about whether I ought to go speak to them or not. What if I really was hallucinating and they weren't The Band Perry? What if I went and asked and I totally made a fool out of myself and wasted their time?

Somehow I dozed off and when I started awake again, my mind was made up. I would ask. The worst that could happen was these people saying "No, we're not The Band Perry." It wouldn't hurt to ask. And if the need came, I'd add, "But you look so much like them! It's so cool!" So that it sounded like a compliment and not me mistaking them for someone famous and upsetting them. All that was left to do was calculate what I would do when the plane landed--I had to get off the plane as fast as possible to catch them before they left.

So I did. I raced off the plane, certain that I would be totally unlucky and they'd be gone by the time I got out of the tunnel thing.

But they were right there. Standing right in front of me. Then I struggled against that "Don't bother them. Just keep walking" feeling. But I ignored it.

From left to right:
My dad, Neil, my mom, Kimberly, me, my brother, Reid.

I walked up to them and said, "Hi."

"Hi!" Kimberly replied, and it encouraged me.

So I said, a little enthusiastically, "You look like The Band Perry!"

At this point I was so giddy that I believe what happened next is either a little more blurry than my tentative "Hi," or it could be the clearest memory I have from that encounter. Reid smiled and replied with something along the lines of, "That's because we are The Band Perry!"

Whether he said precisely those words or not, it's one of the best moments of my life--because it was the moment I realized something totally impossible was happening. To me. I was meeting someone amazingly awesome like them in an airport. I had been in a plane with them!

Then, what happened next was even more insane. My mom always manages to pull off the most amazing things. She talked to Kimberly and made it so that we got free concert tickets, and Meet-and-Greet passes. If I'd done this alone, all I would walk away with was a picture and an autograph; but my mom was there, so she made the amazing experience last even longer.

I'm not sure how she does these things, but I'm sure lucky to have her as my mom.

We met The Band Perry a second time at the Meet-and-Greet and saw the concert. I heard Luke Bryan and now have a new favorite artist--he was amazing as well. It was a great night and the best welcome home I could ask for. I remember that day and know that my life is good. It's amazing. The best things happen to me and my family, and this is one of those things that will stand out.

Even now, a few days later, I can't believe it happened. It must be some sort of dream. But just in case, I tagged their official fan page on the pictures I have up on Facebook. Maybe they'll see the pictures and remember us, because I'm certainly never going to forget that day!