No apologies.

Some conversations and reflection this evening has reminded me of a few things I'll never apologize for loving and including on my "must haves."

This list, as Coach O'Neal of d'Iberville High would say, includes iff (if but not if only) the items in Jo Dee Messina's song of old, "I'm All Right:"



Well, I miss 'em, but I'm doin' all right.

No apologies for that. Not on my part. Or on anyone's part, I hope! :-)

The House That Built Me.

There is an amazing Miranda Lambert song that is out right now called "The House That Built Me." It is absolutely incredible, and though she didn't write it, and even if you totally loathe country music, I sincerely encourage you to step outside of your norm, take a trip down memory lane, and give it a listen:

 

The House That Built Me by Miranda Lambert

I know they say you can’t go home again
I just had to come back one last time
Ma’am I know you don’t know me from Adam
But these handprints on the front steps are mine

Up those stairs in that little back bedroom
Is where I did my homework and I learned to play guitar
I bet you didn’t know under that live oak
My favorite dog is buried in the yard

I thought if I could touch this place or feeling

This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I could walk around I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

Mama cut out pictures of houses for years
From Better Homes and Gardens magazine
Plans were drawn and concrete poured
Nail by nail and board by board
Daddy gave life to mama’s dream

I thought if I could touch this place or feeling
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I could walk around in I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

You leave home and you move on and you do the best you can
I got lost in this old world and forgot who I am

I thought if I could touch this place or feeling
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I walk around I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

Gone Country.

I've been a lover of country music for a very long time. Like, since I can remember.

Tonight while listing some things to sell on eBay, though, and listening to iTunes, I realized that it's been a while since I've heard Alan Jackson's "Gone Country." Which makes me appreciate it more than ever.

::happy sigh::

Here's to liberating ourselves from opinions that do not matter, and listening to, singing, and laughing out loud at exactly what makes us smile!