She’s an eagle when she flies…

Today is Mother’s Day, and I would like to dedicate this song and video to my mom and all of the moms & “like-a-moms” out there. This song is very special to me for a couple of reasons, mainly because it perfectly describes the kind of woman I strive to be…

Gentle as the sweet magnolia
Strong as steel, her faith and pride
She’s an everlasting shoulder
She’s the leaning post of life
She hurts deep and when she weeps
She’s just as fragile as a child
And she’s a sparrow when she’s broken
But she’s an eagle when she flies

Secondly, this is the performance with Dolly that I took part in only 2 weeks after my dad was killed. I was home in Miami, so completely devastated and lost in mourning, not really knowing what to do. When I got the phone call to come back to Nashville and be a part of this, it was like a sign from God (and my dad) that it was ok to move forward…to keep living life. It was ok to go live my dreams and have fun again. It didn’t mean I wasn’t mourning enough or that I didn’t love him enough…in fact, I ended up being able to honor his memory in a way that was so incredibly special…

When wardrobe assigned us our costumes, I got the Army uniform. I had brought back my daddy’s Army pins and patches, and so I honored him by pinning those onto the uniform that night. I can’t think of a better way to have honored him and was amazed at how it had worked out for me to get that particular costume.

A funny story from this night…as you see in the video, President & Barbara Bush were in the audience, and because of that, security was very tight. We all had to go through metal detectors to access the stage to perform. There were secret service there, and other security personnel.

Garth Brooks was standing backstage waiting to go out and perform “Shameless” and we were all hanging out waiting. When he saw me in my military attire, he thought I was there in connection with the President. He was carrying a rose with him, and he stopped in his tracks, put the rose in his mouth, stood at attention and saluted me. I was shocked, but had enough presence of mind to just go with it, so I saluted him back. It was an awesome moment.

Of course, I’ll never forget the screen (curtain) coming up and the first face I saw was the President’s. What a night.

What a song…

Happy Mother’s Day