Last night was probably one of the greatest nights of my life. 6 of my friends drove from out of town to put on a benefit concert to raise money for the mission trip I'll be embarking this coming September. Not only that, but 110 people came to the sanctuary to hear the music, to support the mission, and to worship God thru the talents the Lord gave us.
It was also one of the most overwhelming events I've ever experienced...not because it was busy. But because of what it all meant to me afterwards.
I have been so desperate (yes...desperate) for friendship, fellowship, any-ship the past week, that every day I was thinking, "Oh my gosh, my friends are seriously driving into town!" At 5am, Jonathan arrived, and an hour later, the rest (Jeremy, Chris, Aaron, Carrie, Greg) followed suit. I was elated to see them pile out of the car. I'm pretty sure Chris said, "Don't be so cheery." We sat down and ate breakfast, carrying on in delusional conversation, most of which centered around Granny Lisben and sounds coming from the ketchup bottle.
As they were sitting around rehashing road trip stories, all I could do was just soak up every minute of being with them. I couldn't believe that they took 24 hours from their hectic lives(returning from Ghana, a orchestra concert, driving from Kentucky, and others) and come and play music...for free. For friendship. For their artistic selves. For God. For me. I'm sitting on my back porch right, really sad that only 18 hours before they filled these (once again) empty chairs. As I told my mom, I don't miss Bloomington. But man, I miss them so much.
We got to the church, and our worship leader Chad helped set everything up. My parents and sister and kids were running around, picking up doughnuts, setting up merchandise, distributing pledge cards, and finding the "perfect" spot for balloons. For a moment, I felt like the Carter Family band. All of my family was involved, and for nothing in return. I wasn't paying them. I wasn't begging them. I told them they didn't have to do it. But they did. For family. For God. For me. I have never been so appreciative of my family, so cognizant of how blessed I am to have their love and support. Again, overwhelmed.
The shows started at 7:40. We wanted to make sure the stragglers didn't miss the first song :) We came out on stage, and people started clapping. We hadn't even begun playing. I guess they were clapping because of what we were about to play. I dunno.
As I sang the first song, I started noticing faces: Mr and Mrs. Ostrowski, Barb, the Anstis family, Michael and Cindy. When we started "Circus Life" I had to fight back tears. These people, 110 in all, came to hear us. I know this sounds stupid, but it's different playing for peers than adults. I mean, friends support eachother, but adults have lives! They could have done anything that night. They didn't know the band, but they came to hear us. They didn't even have to pay to come. But they did. For music. For God. For worship. For me. Again...overwhelmed.
The concert ended at 10pm. Some of us went swimming, but most went to sleep because of their early drive. Chris and I had a great conversation by the pool. I've always loved him, purely as a brother from another mother. I hope he has some understanding of how much his friendship meant and still means to me, even when we don't talk for extended periods of time. I talked to a girl I used to "mentor" in high school. She's now married to a pastor, another guy I went to school with. It was "interesting" sitting with her again, just because we've changed so much. Growing up is just interesting in general :)
After everyone was asleep, my mom and sat and tallied the support. When we came to the final total, I just burst out crying. Yes...I, Elise Hindmarsh, allowed myself to cry. I couldn't hold it in anymore. The amount of support (both financially and in love) overwhelmed me. My friends drove from three different states to play with me again. My family worked really hard in prep stuff so I could focus on the music aspects. And people actually came to a concert. People paid to hear our music, in donations. People bought the CDs. People wanted us to go on tour, haha. People said they'd pray for me. And no one was forced. No one was guilted. No one was paid. And all of that, combined, made me feel something I haven't felt in a while...
I felt worth it. I felt worth someone's time. I felt worth someone's friendship. I felt my music was worth something to someone. People didn't just come, they worshipped. They didn't just say good job; they looked me in the eye and said they were blessed. My friends didn't just drive in, play and drive out. They laughed with me, talked with me, told me they enjoyed the concert, even when the "agenda" was over. I'm not sure if they know how much those interactions, above the music, meant to me. Especially when I felt I could offer so little in return.
Friday meant a lot more than music. Friday was one of the greatest forms of human love I have ever encountered. I hope that I have been able to express that adequately.
Thanks.
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