And ... Action!

My acting debut took place during a Christmas program at Alpine Baptist Church when I was seven years old. I remember it well ... my Sunday School teacher slapped some wings on me and put gold garland in my hair, and I read the story about the birth of Jesus from the second chapter of Luke in the Bible. While I would like to somehow convince you that I was hand-selected for the role of an angel because that's how I behaved or because my face resembled that of a cherub, the truth is I was chosen to read the Scripture because I was the best reader out of all the kids. And let me tell you ... my performance that cold night in Tennessee was most definitely Oscar worthy, delivered with all the passion and drama a 7-year-old little girl could muster.

Today was one of those picture-perfect spring days in Kansas with temps in the upper 60s and a clear blue sky. Though Ollie and Julie usually wake me early on the weekends, this morning we all snoozed until around 8:30. After breakfast, I donned jeans, sweatshirt, ball cap and my new walking shoes and headed out for a much-needed long walk with Ollie. I've had a lot on my mind for the last couple of days, and there's really nothing like a long walk when I need to do some serious thinking. We got back home in time for me to play outside with Julie for a while and do some laundry before my appointment with my life-saving head doctor. Following my time with the good doc, I went for a drive ... a quiet, contemplative, half-hour drive to meet my son Brad and his friend Jason for a film shoot.

I love watching my son when he's behind the camera filming. He gets this look on his face ... a look that is part intensity, part concentration, part perfectionism and part pure love. Brad really and truly loves the artistry and beauty that is filmmaking, and I really and truly love watching him do what he loves to do. Today's project is one that Brad, Jason and I have been working together on for several months ... and nope, I can't tell you what it's about until Brad gives me the go-ahead to do so. I can, however, tell you this ... I love the way Brad's eyes light up when he talks about it, and I love that we are working on it together. I can also tell you one more thing ... it's going to be awesome, totally and completely awesome, when it's finished. 

Though my role in the film has been mainly behind the scenes for the last months, Brad asked me to step in front of the camera today ... actually, he told me I had to step in front of the camera today, but that's a whole different story for another day. I was super nervous as Brad and Jason finished setting up the shot and adjusting my microphone. After talking through what Brad had in mind for me to say, we started filming ... and filming ... and filming. All the filming wasn't because we were filming a ton of different scenes, mind you, but rather it was that I kept messing up. I stuttered ... I forgot the words ... I chewed my gum ... I coughed ... I looked the wrong way ... my eyes were too squinty in the sun ... my suspenders were crooked. I have no idea how many takes we shot before Brad said, "That's the one, Mom ... and that's a wrap." I have no idea what wrap he was actually talking about, but I do know that after he said it, we were done with the shoot.

Filming was fun, and it was great to catch up with what's going on in Jason's life ... but sitting across the table from Brad as we ate dinner together was the best part of my day. I sat across the table from my son ... I listened to him and I looked at him and I loved him. The best part of my day, friends ... the best part of my day.