Mistakes Done Well

Our family decided to give fewer material gifts for the holidays.  For the past couple years, we've been giving each other experiences.  This year, I got my mom tickets to see Judy Collins at the Old Town School of Folk Music. We went to see the show last night, and I was blown away: the woman can hit higher notes at 83 than I could in my 20s. 

Her range wasn't all that blew me away.  I couldn't get over how well she made mistakes. She forgot lyrics and had to start songs over.  During her banter, she forgot people's names mid-story and had to abandon the story and just start singing. She even forgot if she had sung the last verse to a song once, and just sang it twice to make sure she hadn't. 

Her responses were magical.  She smiled, called out her mistakes, and started laughing at herself.  Her laughter was so genuine that the whole audience was laughing along with her.  Judy's mistakes and the way she dealt with them were one of my favorite parts of the concert.  What an inspiration. 

Reader, I don't know about you, but 2023 got off to a bumpy start. I've made big errors in every sphere of my life, and I also have vertigo for the first time. If you find yourself mired in your mistakes too, let's take a lesson from ol' Judy Blue Eyes: own them and laugh.  We all make mistakes.  How we deal with them can be deflating or inspiring. It's our choice. 

Hang in there, and I'll see you next Monday.  Enjoy yet another picture from Norway (I can't stop looking at them). -Em

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