What is family, but a gathering of people with a linked future, an interest in one another's well-being, mutually shared experiences, permeated with love.
My own growing-up family is small and dispersed, more so with the passing of both of my parents this year, and I find the family I gather around myself to be of more and more importance.
I always wanted my studio to be a family, and I see evidence of this being fulfilled as I receive prayers and extend prayers, as we meet together to encourage each other in our journeys, and as we watch our children succeed and grow in confidence with each class and each performance.
Today, I was greatly strengthened by a member of our studio family in a time when my own capacity felt like it was at an all time low.
I am so grateful for our studio family.
My grandma Anderson, who many of you have heard me talk about in classes, and who had a great impact on my life, including nurturing my love of music as a child, used to say my kids were "her kids".
I would bring them over, bleary-eyed as a young mom and she would let me sleep on her couch while she watched "her kids".
The memory still brings warmth to my heart.
I hope you'll forgive me if I see your children as "my kids". I am interested in their successes, their trials, they are in my prayers, and I pray for their parents too. đ
It takes a village to raise a child, and I am always honored to be a part of that village.
I hope that through our mutual experiences, everyone in the studio can feel connected, supported, valued, and included.
I can honestly say I haven't met a kid I haven't liked,or a parent I haven't felt a kinship with.
Parenting, or growing up for that matter, isn't easy, but I believe music makes it easier for everyone, and I love that we get to grow closer together through our music making! â€đ¶
Thank you for being a part of my studio family!