The Longest Week Ever

What a weekend!  I think no matter what I say will adequately tell the story of all that has gone on over the past week.  I don't want to bore you, or have this turn into a novel, so I'll try to sum up.

The Reilly Concert

The concert was great!  They are such awesome people, so gifted in their musical abilities, and they put on a rockin' show.  Having them stay with us was so very cool.  Seeing the behind the scenes of how these 5 band members (and their wives) travel and work together is amazing.  The fact that they are not signed to a record label, means they do it all.  They set up their own stuff, sell their own merch, and work very hard at it.  It's a tough gig.  All this besides their "day jobs".  The concert at church went well.  The attendance was a little disappointing, but it was a great show.  The people who were there seemed to really enjoy themselves.  During the week, the bass player's wife lost both of her grandfathers, and they still had to press on with their commitments.  They relied on God to get them through, and as always, He did not disappoint.  The drummer and his wife celebrated their 1st anniversary on Thursday, and spent Wednesday in Chicago.  The rest of the band had already gone on ahead to Cornerstone, so Kate and Kyle rode with us.  Thank God for their GPS!  We would have been driving around those cornfields forever if not for that amazing piece of technology.  

Cornerstone

Oh my, where to begin?!  If you've never been to this particular festival, there is really no adequate way to describe it.  I can give you some facts:  the music is loud (really, really loud!), there are only port a-potties available (totally covered in flyers for all the bands), there is only electricity at electrical boxes randomly located around the grounds, and I saw a slice of humanity that I would never be around otherwise.  I'm talking the multi-pierced, mohawk (blue seemed to be a popular hair color) wearing, goth-looking people.  And then there were the hippie-ish people, the one with dreads, and some "normal" folks like ourselves.  It really opened my eyes to how much I stereotype people.   I'll admit I was kind of put-off by the people getting "goth make-overs", and the huge ear-piercing things.  I don't even know what they are called, but when you have a hole in your earlobe big enough to stick your finger through...just gave me chills looking at them.  But, for the most part, these people had things in common to bring us together.  We all love God, and we love music.  What some people define as music, others define as noise, but we were all there with one purpose.  To enjoy community with others who love God, and worship Him.  It was wild to be sure!   I got some pictures, but they're nothing compared to the ones here.  You can go check out some of the pictures and video if you want the whole experience.  I would especially recommend checking out the video of Flatfoot 56.  I myself refrained from getting involved in the crazy mosh pit, but I do have a friend who took his boys in their with him, and they all came out alive.  The other craziness I just had to capture was a game, new to me, but apparently common among festival goers and youth groups.  The game is called Buck-Buck, and you just have to see it to appreciate the insanity of this.    Ten people form the bottom "horse", and then other people run down the hill and leap frog onto their backs.  They continue doing this until someone falls, usually everyone!  Did you guys know about this game?  I sure didn't.  And no, I did not play along!

The girls had as much fun as you can with the heat, the dust, and the walking.  Did I mention you had to walk everywhere?  It was about a 10-15 minute walk to the main stage from our campsite. 

We definitely picked the wrong campsite!  Our tent was close enough to some of the other stages that played until 2 am.  And we're not talking the nice, smooth music of Over the Rhine, no, it was stuff like this!  We could feel the ground pulse with their bass.  At 1 in the morning, not so fun.  Really, not so fun anytime.  I slept until 11 yesterday to try to make up for some of my lost sleep, but I'm still very tired.  As was Alisha during the 4th of July concerts.   We may have sweated and burned all day long, but at night it was stinkin' cold!  I'm working on getting some video up of Reilly playing at Cornerstone, but I'm technologically challenged. 

It was worth going if only to help Reilly pass out their stickers advertising for their shows.  I did enjoy David Crowder, Over the Rhine, and especially New World Son.  If you listen to these few musical selections you'll get an idea of the huge diversity of music that Cornerstone offers.  I enjoyed getting out of my comfort zone, and yet managed to avoid all the people giving "free hugs".  Yeah, that was a bit too much for me. 

                                                                          All in all, it was a good time! 

Comments

[Jana (sidetrack'd)]

I'm glad you guys had a good time, but am sorry to hear about the sleeping troubles. I know all about lack of sleep, and it is no fun!

Matt and I love Over the Rhine - jealous that you got to see them in person; it never seems to work out for us when they are nearby.

Hope you have a great week and can catch up on some of your sleep!