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 october 9, 1996
Notes from the Road sorry that i haven't written in a day or so. last night's show went very smoothly. everyone (including mike, the owner/driver of the bus) has recovered from what i'm sure will live on as 'the '97 bus fiasco' (refer to yesterday's journal if you're lost). we've been on the road pretty much all day on our way back to atlanta. i say pretty much because of an hour jaunt at a wal-mart in lexington, north carolina. we'll leave atlanta tomorrow for birmingham, alabama. we're playing tomorrow night at samford university. this hasn't really seemed like a day off because we've been in the bus all day. still, at least we're getting some rest. back to the show last night, we were very excited that we had the turn out that we did, considering that it was our first time in boone, north carolina. i've observed an incredible underlying sense of unity everywhere that we've been so far. i have so much respect for the folks that handle the logistics surrounding these concerts. there's an amazing amount of work and organization that goes into making these things run smoothly. i sure couldn't do it. i'm so thankful that God has placed such capable people all around us; everyone from the sponsors and organizations (often on campus), to our manager, kirby trapolino, and our road manager, micah ottosen. they all have incredible amounts of pressure on them, and handle it so gracefully. God is so providential. i have been hoping to have time to talk about a song that danielle and i co-wrote, called 'piece of glass,' and this long bus trip today is lending itself nicely. allow me to provide the setting over which this song came about. danielle, cliff, and i were in atlanta about a month ago mixing the new record with don, and since don is the genius, we had a lot of free time on our hands. we were staying at the coolest bed & breakfast in decatur called 'the sycamore house.' one night while we were at mick's (our favorite decatur restaurant/hang out), danielle and i got to talking about how we were realizing more and more what a huge responsibility it was having a platform such as we do, and taking full advantage of it. she was talking about all of the convictions that she had, and how she so desired to be more expressive on stage about some of those things. if you've ever been to any of our shows, then you know that we all definitely have our own vibe as far as what we do on stage. danielle just has the coolest mellow thing going on, and she's rarely talked over the years. specifically we were talking about how aware we were becoming of the horrible effects of eating disorders, especially in friends that we have, and have had. danielle was very adamant about the fact that no matter how unattractive this subject was, one couldn't afford to ignore it. it genuinely affects everyone, and is unfortunately very relevant on college campuses. she was talking so passionately about all of this, so i suggested that she address the subject from stage. the dilemma was what means she would use. i suggested that she write a song. she had written some well textured poetry over the years that she had let me read, so i knew that she was definitely capable. we eventually came to the conclusion that we could try and work together on it, though she had never written an entire song, and i had always written alone. as soon as we got back to sycamore, we began working. she wrote a page's worth of her basic thoughts on the matter, gave it to me, and i went into another room to think. we went back and forth revising and re-revising each others ideas for about a half hour, until we felt confident enough to actually collaborate face to face. once we really got going, we were done in about 20 minutes. the song really wrote itself. the most exciting thing about the whole process is that it's outcome gives danielle an immediate platform to talk about a matter that is often the most personal of matters, all in a live situation. danielle's incredible insight is a facet of this band that has gone mostly unexposed live. she has definitely been a huge source of discipleship for me over the years, and it seems that God is cultivating a strength in her that will allow her to share more of herself on a more broad platform in days to come. it's a song about not allowing yourself to be controlled by something that you actually, and ultimately control; something so simple, yet so addicting; something that is no more than a reflection of an earthly suit that will be made obsolete in Heaven, and is no reflection of our true identity in Christ: a piece of glass. piece of glass
can't believe that i did it again, wake me up from this nightmare
who are you that cries when you stare at my face,
still this nightmare's all mine. when i call him he answers,
who are you that cries when you stare at my face,
don't talk, listen. hold me, tighter. stay with me just for a
while,
who are you that lies when you stare at my face, continued thanks for your prayers, and for reading.
take care- |
