Album Release

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Thanksgiving 2008

Things to be thankful for, things you can never replace:

A hug from my mom.
Going along on a house visit with my dad the amazing horse vet.
The smell of the desert after the rain.
The Squaw Peak mountains by moonlight.

Santiago de Mexico




My favorite blog topics are my friends and the people in my life that I admire. And one of my favorite ways to pass the weekend (since moving to Texas) is actually getting OUT of the State to spread a little lone star love to other areas of the world. Which leads us to this blog entry. I call it "Santiago de Mexico."

Earlier this month, I made a quick escapade to Guadalajara, Mexico to visit a harpist friend I know from France. We had both set up camp in the Cote d'Azur to study under the same teacher, and he was one of the first people I met when I arrived there over three years ago. His name is Santiago Morales. He's originally from Veracruz, and I had never seen him on this side of the Atlantic. We were past due for a visit.

Santiago is the kind of person that inspires you to be a better person... to enjoy life and to be your beautiful self. I would have been happy to visit him for 10 minutes, but I got to spend the entire weekend there- playing music, meeting his friends and students, drinking coffee, eating amazing food, and visiting the market. Our usual.

During our overlap in France, we spent a lot of memorable time together. We laughed till we cried, cried till we laughed, commiserated about the French, celebrated the French, explored, practiced, performed, and pushed each other to be better musicians. With Santiago, you can talk about anything from skin exfoliation to Jesus to relationships to fears to homemade salad dressing. He's the kind of person that lights up an entire hotel lobby upon entrance (namely, the Negresco). Maybe it's the giant smile. He laughs easily and tells stories like it's his favorite pass time. When I first heard him play, I wept- I just couldn't hold it in. But it was a good cry somehow. He has a very musical, rich sound. Hearing him play makes you want to go home to practice and be a better harpist. A better person, even.

And what I like about Santiago is that he's not perfect, and he knows it. He is his humble, loving, lovable self 24/7. So- cheers to Mexico. Cheers to harp playing. Cheers to being yourself. Cheers to Santiago.