My bandmate, Anastasia, texted me on Sunday: “One year ago today was our Haiti Benefit Concert! So grateful to make music with you!” My mind circled back through all the work and excitement that led up to the concert, and I smiled as I remembered one ambition in particular.
Several months before the benefit concert, I met a PR coach and learned how I could pitch a story to get our concert featured in the media. I had a vision of the local Denver news showing photos of the smiling Amurtel Orphanage kids in Haiti, with Kate, Anastasia and I being interviewed on the morning news. And it wasn’t just any news station: it was 9News I wanted to get on. So I carefully prepared my pitch. I sent it. I followed up. I called the News Desk. I followed their instructions. And I got…. silence. No response.
I gave up on banging my head on the wall, and did have success getting our inspiring event featured in two local magazines and one public radio station. We had a great crowd at the concert, and raised about $3600 for a new roof at the orphanage in Haiti. I was exhausted afterward, but happy, and decided to take a year off from planning such a big event.
A happy girl enjoying her meal at the Amurtel Haiti Children's Home
I let it go that we didn’t see ourselves on TV. Raising the money and having fun at the concert were enough.
But here is the twist: ten months later, my band appeared on 9News, without any effort on my part. We were playing an amazing Sensory-Friendly concert at Swallow Hill in Denver, and I was taking my customary pit-stop in the ladies room before the show. Through the metal walls of the stall, I overheard excited voices:
“Did you see her? A reporter from 9News showed up! She said she heard about the concert and asked if she could take some shots and interview a few people!”
My stomach dropped. For a moment I was overcome with nervousness. What if I mess up and my incompetence is broadcast all over the state? But then I smiled and remembered the words to my song “Flow with the Rhythm” about surrendering into life’s twists and turns. I remembered that whether ten people hear my performance or 10,000, all I can do is let the divine joy flow through my song.
That evening, we appeared on TV singing our hearts out with Santa hats on. Our band was not the focus of the news story; the delightfully active kids were rightfully the center of attention. And I was grinning from ear to ear, remembering that life and dreams are not for me to control. When I pushed so hard to get on the news, nothing happened. But when I was relaxed and unsuspecting, life fulfilled my little dream in a new way.
We have to put ourselves out there, it is true. We do need effort. And then all we can do is trust that everything will unfold in its proper time.