A Night Of Surprises!
Justin Hines, we introduced him in the last post, encouraging our fellow town folk to attend his concert. Well, we made it and wow, what a blessing that evening was.
Not only is he an incredibly talented Canadian singer, he is, as we suspected, a deep, sincere, and meaningful person! You can tell that when you watch him sing and listen to his lyrics. And well, when you actually meet him! Surprise! On our way to the venue, my husband Craig, my Dad and myself, were about to walk through the parking lot and spotted the "Vehicle of Change" RV and who was coming out of it? Justin and his beautiful wife, Savannah. (Hope I have her name spelled correctly)
That was one of a few surprises that night. The first one was, we didn't know until we bought tickets and read them, that Justin was touring with a duo who call themselves "Ash and Bloom." Unaware, we googled them and were glad to learn that we'd enjoy them as well. Turned out A & B were sincere, deep and meaningful also! Oh and our first thoughts, "they remind us of Simon and Garfunkel!"
Capturing A Great Evening
Wanting to capture this once in a life time event (for us) and to make a tribute to Justin and now, Ash and Bloom, I came with my handy dandy, compact digital camera...mission accomplished. Check out the edited version here.
Side Bar: Adaptive Video and Photography Pointers
I made my usual amateur video. I apologize for the wobbles and shakes. When I make videos my arms aren't able to move beyond my chest level, which means, I point and shoot and hope it works! Been doing it this way ever since my arms stopped cooperating. Hey, it's all about adapting as you go. The invention of the compact digital camera has definitely been a blessing. It means less weight to hold and that I can take pictures without being able to hoist the camera up to my eye. TO me, a camera can feel like it weighs a pound, so that's definitely a plus.
After doing it so much, you get a good sense of what you are pointing at. So to anyone who has given up on taking photos, due to physical limitations, don't. There's always a way to make it work when you really want to accomplish something. In fact, I have even seen adaptive tripods that can mount to your wheelchair arm rests or the frame. It's a perfect option for those who have restricted mobility such as myself, or those who want to take some seriously steady video without your viewers requiring one of those little bags they give you on an airplane. (you know the ones I mean ;O)
All things considered, I think wobble and all, the essence of the evening was captured.
Sharing What We Love With Who We Love
Do you ever have that feeling when you discover a painter, read a book or hear a musician you adore, that you then, want those you care about to watch, read or listen too! Well, that's how we feel about Justin. So, aside from emailing everyone we knew about the event, turned out my parents and Craig's sister and her husband were able to join us.
Not only did they enjoy Justin and Ash and Bloom, but as you will see in the video, A & B wanted to "go deep" as they said and sing about, "old love," celebrating marriages that have been together for a long time. Knowing that my parent's are coming up to their fiftieth wedding anniversary on October 12th, I was thrilled to have them say that. The fellas asked who has been married for five...ten...twenty...thirty and fifty, or more years. With great excitement I looked toward my parents and they had their hands up! You will have to watch the video to find out what happened next. Needless to say, that was surprise number three of the evening.
What a great time!
Thanks Guys!
Craig and I just want to encourage anyone who has the opportunity to listen to or watch Justin and Ash and Bloom, to do so. We hadn't been out in the evening, well, since...can't even remember.
We typically spend the evenings watching a movie or a favourite dvd, relaxing and...oh, how does that song go...."take a load off your fanny...." Yah, we spend it doing that! Seriously, the older that Craig and I get, our ROHO cushions can't comfort our aging, painful backsides. (I know too much information, but those of you in our position, will know what I mean.) This evening was worth any ach or pain that arose, in fact, we were enjoying it all so much, forgot about the pain. What a great pain reliever!
So long Justin and Ash and Bloom, you are in our prayers and we know the rest of your tour will be wonderful. Thanks for sharing your voices and hearts with us. Make sure you look us up if you are ever in our fair city again! God bless you.
Thank You God!
And thank you God for causing us to learn about the concert and for introducing us to Justin, the year the Ontario Tourism promo came out! We didn't need to discover Ontario, You knew we needed to discover Justin Hines!
Lay Your Burdens Down
For those of you who face challenges 24/7, be they invisible or visible, the road may be bumpier at times, heck, even loaded with pot holes and these days, sink holes. And there may be days when you don't have the energy or motivation to even get out of bed. Trust me, I know that feeling. But because God makes Himself known to us, to me, in so many ways, through the Jesus, and even through the lives of individuals like Justin Hines, Joni Eareckson Tada, Nick Vujcic and my husband Craig - my temptation to feel self pity and discouragement is abated. Not saying I never walk down that path of discouragement, but when I am tempted to, or while I have been hiking down it, He reminds me, yet again....
Philippians 4:13 NKJV - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Matthew 11:28 NKJV - "Come to Me, all [you] who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. "For My yoke [is] easy and My burden is light."
Justin Hines, we introduced him in the last post, encouraging our fellow town folk to attend his concert. Well, we made it and wow, what a blessing that evening was.
 |
| Guess who my Dad, husband and I got to meet prior to the concert? |
Capturing A Great Evening
Wanting to capture this once in a life time event (for us) and to make a tribute to Justin and now, Ash and Bloom, I came with my handy dandy, compact digital camera...mission accomplished. Check out the edited version here.
I made my usual amateur video. I apologize for the wobbles and shakes. When I make videos my arms aren't able to move beyond my chest level, which means, I point and shoot and hope it works! Been doing it this way ever since my arms stopped cooperating. Hey, it's all about adapting as you go. The invention of the compact digital camera has definitely been a blessing. It means less weight to hold and that I can take pictures without being able to hoist the camera up to my eye. TO me, a camera can feel like it weighs a pound, so that's definitely a plus.
After doing it so much, you get a good sense of what you are pointing at. So to anyone who has given up on taking photos, due to physical limitations, don't. There's always a way to make it work when you really want to accomplish something. In fact, I have even seen adaptive tripods that can mount to your wheelchair arm rests or the frame. It's a perfect option for those who have restricted mobility such as myself, or those who want to take some seriously steady video without your viewers requiring one of those little bags they give you on an airplane. (you know the ones I mean ;O)
All things considered, I think wobble and all, the essence of the evening was captured.
Sharing What We Love With Who We Love
Do you ever have that feeling when you discover a painter, read a book or hear a musician you adore, that you then, want those you care about to watch, read or listen too! Well, that's how we feel about Justin. So, aside from emailing everyone we knew about the event, turned out my parents and Craig's sister and her husband were able to join us.
Not only did they enjoy Justin and Ash and Bloom, but as you will see in the video, A & B wanted to "go deep" as they said and sing about, "old love," celebrating marriages that have been together for a long time. Knowing that my parent's are coming up to their fiftieth wedding anniversary on October 12th, I was thrilled to have them say that. The fellas asked who has been married for five...ten...twenty...thirty and fifty, or more years. With great excitement I looked toward my parents and they had their hands up! You will have to watch the video to find out what happened next. Needless to say, that was surprise number three of the evening.
What a great time!
Thanks Guys!
Craig and I just want to encourage anyone who has the opportunity to listen to or watch Justin and Ash and Bloom, to do so. We hadn't been out in the evening, well, since...can't even remember.
And thank you God for causing us to learn about the concert and for introducing us to Justin, the year the Ontario Tourism promo came out! We didn't need to discover Ontario, You knew we needed to discover Justin Hines!
Lay Your Burdens Down
For those of you who face challenges 24/7, be they invisible or visible, the road may be bumpier at times, heck, even loaded with pot holes and these days, sink holes. And there may be days when you don't have the energy or motivation to even get out of bed. Trust me, I know that feeling. But because God makes Himself known to us, to me, in so many ways, through the Jesus, and even through the lives of individuals like Justin Hines, Joni Eareckson Tada, Nick Vujcic and my husband Craig - my temptation to feel self pity and discouragement is abated. Not saying I never walk down that path of discouragement, but when I am tempted to, or while I have been hiking down it, He reminds me, yet again....
Philippians 4:13 NKJV - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Matthew 11:28 NKJV - "Come to Me, all [you] who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. "For My yoke [is] easy and My burden is light."
