Saturday, November 22, 2008

Mom & Amy Grant

From the time I was an infant, my mom always used to sing me to sleep. It was always one of the most comforting, soothing things in life. She had a regular rotation of songs she'd sing, and to this day, whenever I hear any of them, I am instantly transported back to laying in the comfort of my parents' big bed with my little brother by my side, mom on one side, dad on the other, listening to her lull us to sleep.

Two of my favorites were Amy Grant's 'Father's Eyes' and the old hymn 'I Come to the Garden Alone'.

On Saturday mornings, when I was little, my mom or dad used to get up and turn on (and turn up) one of their favorite old records or CD's - usually Amy Grant, the Eagles, or James Taylor - while we would all clean up the house together, or cook together, or just do regular "Saturday" things, haha. I didn't realize until I was older ,and it had been years since I'd heard those songs echoing through the house on a Saturday morning, how much that music tied me to those memories.

This year, for my 25th birthday, my mom bought tickets for she and I to sit on the 13th row at Amy Grant's Fort Worth show last Friday. It was one of the best gifts I've ever had. Since I grew up with mom singing Amy's songs to me, I had no choice but to fall in love with her music. I know most of her older albums better than the newer ones, and they all have a strong emotional tie to my childhood.

All that to say, when my mom and I went to the Amy Grant 'Lead Me On' 20th Anniversary concert at Will Rogers last weekend, I was pretty excited.

When Amy came to the stage to open the show, she walked over and picked up her acoustic guitar, and began to play 'Father's Eyes' to kick everything off in a soft, slow, easy way. It may have been my favorite part of the show already, and it was the first song. How special to be sitting with my mom and hearing Amy Grant herself sing what was one of my favorite lullabies!

Amy singing 'Father's Eyes'


She followed that song with an announcement that, throughout the night, she and her re-assembled band from 20 years ago, would not be playing any music that was recorded after 1988. I was 5 years old in 1988. Somehow, I knew every word to every song she played that night, and was so comforted and encouraged by each one. It was so exciting for me, spiritually, to get to connect with the true meanings of songs that had been played in the background of my childhood, and to learn what my parents could've been learning from them 20+ years ago.



I'm so thankful for music, and for the way it connects people, and the way it connects me to my Heavenly Father.

It was a night I'll not soon forget.

2 comments:

Jessica said...

aw, that's neat Tori...sounds like a very special evening. And my mom used to sing to me as well...such a comforting feeling, just loved those memories.

Krista Sanders said...

I can't think of any better thing to say than "I am so jealous!!" I so wanted to be at the concert but we had to be out of town. I am not a groupie or anything but I love her music--especially her old stuff. I am so glad you got to go and have the experience. Sweet gift, Mom!