Listen to Steven: "Keep getting back up"
Well, it's the second-to-last week of American Idol and this unintentional blog series is winding down. I admit I had a "Just turn it off, Jo" moment last night when I turned on the TV and the first image I saw was a child wearing a t-shirt that said "In it to win it" as she screamed for a glimpse of Scotty M. I really don't like that. Nope. No I don't.
[Side note: As I write this, I went to look at the recap to make sure I got the quotes right and OMG!!!! I didn't know the show went until 10! I missed the last half hour!! Oh Steven, what gems did I not get to hear? Rats.]
Well anyway.
This season has been very interesting. I mean, I really didn't set out to find inspiration every week, and I have to be honest here and say I wondered, as the eliminations got more painful and disappointing, if I could. But in the end, the real lesson I've learned is that you can find inspiration just about everywhere once you start looking. As Steven Tyler said, "Sometimes it's nice to push yourself and see how far you can go." I think we've gone just about nearly far enough. :-)
Last weekend, I was at the New England SCBWI conference, another place where you can't help but find inspiration. My favorite event was Lin Oliver's speech. She told several success stories about different SCBWI members, and at the end of each story, she would reiterate what the lesson from each one was. These were along the lines of "Do the work." "Make writing your top priority." "Listen to what people are telling you." The very last one was "You have to face your fear." Each story seemed to get more touching, and by the end, I was crying over the beauty of it all. Because more than getting published, these stories were about friendship, love, community, giving, and not giving up.
I've been thinking about Lin's stories all week. Lin's stories, my friends' stories, and my own. All of the lessons Lin mentioned are true. But they are also hard. Some days, they seem impossible. And the only way any of us have really learned and carried them out is with each others' support. So thank you.
Now, I've been feeling pretty sappy about all this since last Saturday. In fact, when I was gushing about Lin's talk, I think some of my friends thought I was taking some happy pills or something. But I haven't. I'm just happy!
In light of all this, and the fact that Haley didn't get voted off last week, I was feeling very optimistic about her. Her first song was incredible. Just incredible. Every time she performs, her originality shines. In the past two weeks, the judges have criticized her first songs, but I just knew, I just KNEW they weren't going to have anything to say to this one. And then... She fell. I couldn't believe it. And I thought, well, this is what everyone will be talking about. Not how amazing she was, but that stupid stumble. And look at me! I'm guilty of it too. But there's a point.
Because the really amazing thing was? Randy was the first judge to give feedback and he didn't mention it! He just talked about how wonderful she was. He really redeemed himself on that one. So I was bummed when Jennifer didn't follow his lead. But what she said was so important. "I've fallen too. We all have." And then Steven added, "It's not how many times you fall, it's how many times you get back up."
And there it is. Cliche as it is, that's the key. It's what Lin was telling us with all the success stories she shared with us on Saturday: Every single one of them was about getting back up. It's what Jennifer was telling us when she described how she and Beyoncé and others have fallen on stage: We've ALL made mistakes and had embarrassing falls. All of us. And it's what Steven was telling us when he said it doesn't matter how many times you fall: There's only one reason any of us who've made a sale finally made one. We kept getting back up.
I know. It's a lot easier to say than do. But really, what other choice is there? Besides, I know one way to make it easier, and it comes back to Lin and what she said about community and supporting one another and sharing our humanity. When you see someone fall, reach out your hand, hold tight, and help pull them back up. If you commit to that, I mean really commit to it, I know someone will do the same for you.
[Side note: As I write this, I went to look at the recap to make sure I got the quotes right and OMG!!!! I didn't know the show went until 10! I missed the last half hour!! Oh Steven, what gems did I not get to hear? Rats.]
Well anyway.
This season has been very interesting. I mean, I really didn't set out to find inspiration every week, and I have to be honest here and say I wondered, as the eliminations got more painful and disappointing, if I could. But in the end, the real lesson I've learned is that you can find inspiration just about everywhere once you start looking. As Steven Tyler said, "Sometimes it's nice to push yourself and see how far you can go." I think we've gone just about nearly far enough. :-)
Last weekend, I was at the New England SCBWI conference, another place where you can't help but find inspiration. My favorite event was Lin Oliver's speech. She told several success stories about different SCBWI members, and at the end of each story, she would reiterate what the lesson from each one was. These were along the lines of "Do the work." "Make writing your top priority." "Listen to what people are telling you." The very last one was "You have to face your fear." Each story seemed to get more touching, and by the end, I was crying over the beauty of it all. Because more than getting published, these stories were about friendship, love, community, giving, and not giving up.
I've been thinking about Lin's stories all week. Lin's stories, my friends' stories, and my own. All of the lessons Lin mentioned are true. But they are also hard. Some days, they seem impossible. And the only way any of us have really learned and carried them out is with each others' support. So thank you.
Now, I've been feeling pretty sappy about all this since last Saturday. In fact, when I was gushing about Lin's talk, I think some of my friends thought I was taking some happy pills or something. But I haven't. I'm just happy!
In light of all this, and the fact that Haley didn't get voted off last week, I was feeling very optimistic about her. Her first song was incredible. Just incredible. Every time she performs, her originality shines. In the past two weeks, the judges have criticized her first songs, but I just knew, I just KNEW they weren't going to have anything to say to this one. And then... She fell. I couldn't believe it. And I thought, well, this is what everyone will be talking about. Not how amazing she was, but that stupid stumble. And look at me! I'm guilty of it too. But there's a point.
Because the really amazing thing was? Randy was the first judge to give feedback and he didn't mention it! He just talked about how wonderful she was. He really redeemed himself on that one. So I was bummed when Jennifer didn't follow his lead. But what she said was so important. "I've fallen too. We all have." And then Steven added, "It's not how many times you fall, it's how many times you get back up."
And there it is. Cliche as it is, that's the key. It's what Lin was telling us with all the success stories she shared with us on Saturday: Every single one of them was about getting back up. It's what Jennifer was telling us when she described how she and Beyoncé and others have fallen on stage: We've ALL made mistakes and had embarrassing falls. All of us. And it's what Steven was telling us when he said it doesn't matter how many times you fall: There's only one reason any of us who've made a sale finally made one. We kept getting back up.
I know. It's a lot easier to say than do. But really, what other choice is there? Besides, I know one way to make it easier, and it comes back to Lin and what she said about community and supporting one another and sharing our humanity. When you see someone fall, reach out your hand, hold tight, and help pull them back up. If you commit to that, I mean really commit to it, I know someone will do the same for you.
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