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During the quarantine, I’ve enjoyed seeing some TV personalities broadcasting from their family tables with their kids in their laps! It has gotten me thinking…. ”What stories would be told if our tables could talk?”
After 10 weeks of no haircut, I finally took “scissors” into my own hands and attempted to give myself a haircut. If it weren’t for my husband trimming the back for me, I would definitely be sporting a mullet! It reminded me of the time I hid under our dining table and cut my own bangs. Doesn't every kid do this?  For me, this table represents good memories, as well as some painful ones. Nightly dinners and holidays at this table were certainly a source of stabilization in my life. Sometimes however, this table was not only a hiding place for me when being mischievous, but also a place to hide from difficult moments. Like the night, only 3 months after this picture was taken, when we were in the middle of dinner and my father came home from the hospital, knelt down by the table, and told us that our mother had gone to heaven. I crawled under the table and cried. In some ways my memories around this table similarly reflect what we are going through as a human race right now. While this corona virus is tragically taking lives away from some family dinner tables, at the same time it is bringing other families together around the table in ways they might have never imagined possible. Let’s make the best of what we are given. Let’s laugh, love, cry, talk, learn, grow, and pray. We never know when it may be our last time together around that table.
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I'm not sure where this quote originated, but it certainly has been my experience.
Every time I take those somewhat painful and scary steps, something good comes from it and another door of opportunity opens! It's by no means perfect and I wouldn’t say it necessarily gets easier, but it gets more believable! Many times I get overwhelmed with all that seems unfinished and how much I will always need to learn. I rarely sit back and appreciate how far I’ve come! A friend suggested I write down my accomplishments last year. She said it might surprise and encourage me. What a great idea! Taking inventory helped me see clearly the great things God has done in my life and also that hard work does pay off! In addition to releasing FIVE NEW SINGLES and TWO NEW MUSIC VIDEOS, I worked harder than ever behind the scenes on the business side, while still working full time to help support this crazy habit! Results?
"So, what's next?" “So what’s next?”, people ask. Creating more music is what I want to really focus on next year. I’m not entirely sure what it will all look like at this point, but whatever the next step, I think it will be good because you can be sure it will be out of my comfort zone!!! Join me! 
Thanks to modern technology, that dream is finally coming true!!! Valley View Records, a record label in Australia that supports independent artists, invited me to submit a track for their new compilation album. I agreed of course, having no idea what I would write! Ha! Then one day I received the following text from my daughter!  The album project was going to be called "Dream Chasers", so when I saw Kelly's text and listened to the song, I knew it was the perfect song to submit for the album! We made a few tweaks to the song long distance via voice memos on our phones. I recorded the song and sent it to my musician friend, Judson Hurd , who added the beautiful dreamy effects. Then I sent it to VVR in Australia! All of this was done digitally and via the internet. Amazing right? NOW...HERE IT IS!! and I couldn't be happier! I am so proud and grateful to be part of this project. Valley View Records has worked so hard on it! They even created a music video to go with each song! Here is ours! Kelly and I are so happy to be sharing this with you! You can find the entire album on all streaming platforms ! You know those experiences in life that are stressful at the time but become something you laugh about later? This story is one of those…
So why is it so important that I fight the heat, the crowds, the traffic and the bugs, just to see something I’ve seen for decades? And why in the world did I feel a little guilty this year because I stayed home to watch them on TV? I had to do some soul searching to understand what REALLY is behind my love for fireworks.
Fast forward several decades to NY again when my daughter, Kelly, was living in the city! It had always been a dream of mine to be right on the water like those people you see on TV at the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular. (If you have that dream when you watch the show, let me share some information that might just help you enjoy your spot from the couch!) One year while visiting Kelly, we actually did it! We got down to the river early enough in the afternoon to claim our spot right next to the water. We had a picnic, played games, made friends, and watched the sun set. With great anticipation we waited for it to get dark enough for the fireworks to begin! As we were waiting, I realized I needed to find a bathroom. What we didn’t know was that once the area next to the water was filled with people, it was roped off and no one was allowed to get in or out! Yeah…no way to go to the bathroom! So I did a little mind over matter and convinced myself that I could hold it until after the fireworks. During the fireworks, I forgot all about the need for a bathroom and was feeling like this was one of the best decisions I had ever made! Most amazing fireworks show ever!
We finally made it to our stop and I painfully found an open diner on our walk home! Whew! Sweet relief! I still laugh every time I hear that lady in my head and will forever remember that as a moment when laughter turned a very stressful situation into something bearable, well... almost! Even though I said at the time, “I’ll never do that again!”, we actually did go back another year to watch the NYC Fireworks - on a river cruise! We had a front row spot on the water and watched the fireworks from the upper deck of the boat! Bathrooms were included! Now THAT was one of the best decisions I have ever made!!!! 
Not too long ago when that I happened, I could hear God’s still, small voice whisper, “Just breathe Marlowe, just breathe!” Once I remembered to breathe, then I could begin to “cast my cares on Him, knowing that He cares for me” I Peter 5:7. I went to the piano and began to play very slowly and quietly... to pray and receive His peace. This song, “Breathe”, came out of that experience. Many thanks to Sonder House for adding my track, "Breathe", on the album Recollections Vol 2 now streaming wherever you listen to digital music!
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