Sunday Music

Honestly, I've decided that autumn is my favorite season of the year. These days in the seventies (and nights in the fifties) are absolutely fabulous! Today we went to Mass early so we could go to the music in Carrboro at Weaver Street Market. The whole event was simply wonderful!
Annie has been absolutely been fascinated with all sorts of sounds lately. Today, she would actually clap with the crowd after each song! She gets a kick out of that! (It's funny because when Leia was this age, she was scared to death of clapping. I remember Christmas Eve in Florida that year when everyone clapped at Mass and Leia started screaming. Yikes! But, hey, Annie seems to have more separation anxiety. It's give and take, I guess.) At first, Annie sat on my lap just listening to the music for about a half an hour. (It got a little bit harder after that, though, because all she really wanted to do was eat mulch. It'll be so nice when she's walking, . . . and not doing so much of that oral exploration anymore.)

The most exciting this was that we had some friends join us at the music unexpectedly! Sophia (Leia's really good friend from school, . . . co-buds with Jessica) came with her whole family! Glad we had an extra ribbon wand for Sophia (see below)! : ) It was great to get to know Sophia's mom and dad better, turns out we have St. Thomas More as well as Artgarden in common! We ended up talking lots about Mass and homilies, . . . and last year's "campaign." (Ha!)

Lots of times when we go to the music, I bring these twirling ribbons. This is the first time Leia Rose got to try the rainbow one that Santa Claus brought, . . . and we always bring the ones we got from Cassie's & Alan's wedding reception (those are really beat up now). You can see the huge tree in the background that, if you pick the right spot, will shade you through the whole thing. I still haven't figured out what kind of tree it is. Pecan, someone said.
And who else was there? Leia's former classmate, Bella! This is the girl that is so similar to Leia that they butted heads a bit. Hmmmm, trying to remember what Leia said that day, . . . I asked her “Is there anyone at school who is not your friend?” And she said, “Bella, . . . because she always wants me to do things and I like to do things my own way.” Bella's also the girl who told me that Annie's head looked just like a potato. Ha!
Okay, now this picture really needs an explanation. First, there's Leia, Bella, and Sophia in the background "stepping on the roots" which was one of their favorite games of the day. BUT, I just have to mention the guy in the foreground and the story behind him. We've always called him "Dancing Man" (and today we learned that he's really "Bruce: the Dancing Man.") This guy is the definition of stepping "to the beat of a different drummer." Fabulous! It's absolutely fascinating to watch him doing all sorts of fluid movements to the music, . . . any type of music, mind you. And he's always there. Every week. And he always stands right there by the tree, dancing his dance. Sometimes a child will come and join him. Sometimes a woman will come and join him. He freely dances happily with anyone who wants to, but he never says a word. More often than not, people will be dancing in front of the band, but not necessarily with him (like Leia and I danced today, . . . like we always do). Anyway, last year, we were there when someone actually made an announcement that dancing was banned from these music concerts. I was floored! Everyone there knew it was in reference to Dancing Man, and my thought was, "Come ON, this is Carrboro for goodness sake!" And I observed Dancing Man suddenly sit under his signature tree, look down at the ground, and then disappear completely. He didn't come back for weeks. Supposedly, there was such a public outcry (protests and all) that they reinstated the dancing allowance. Dancing Man suddenly appeared again. So, as you can see, going to the music in Carrboro is always an exercise in character as well. : ) Literally everyone come together: liberals and conservatives alike. Although today I heard the musicians dedicate "Let No Evil Pass This Way" to Bill O'Reilly. Hmmm, liberal undertones, huh? I'll forgive them for that in favor of the bluegrass and due to the general gaiety of the morning. : )
Later, I joined the girls at the other spectacle (this one is always behind the big tree): the hula-hoopers. Sometimes there are people who do things with hula-hoops I never knew possible. Such fluid movements! On those days, I can't take my eyes off those people. Here's Sophia trying a trick I taught her: to use the hoop as a kind of jump rope. : ) The owners are always happy to share with the local children.

And before we left, I couldn't pass up this photo opportunity. : ) It was really a glorious morning! Of course, Brian had to miss RCIA as a result (his sponsor wasn't there anyway), but I guess sometimes there are other ways to praise God.