Second City

I'm packing to leave for Nashville tomorrow and have such a warm anticipation about being there...if only for the weekend. My friend from college, Corrie is having a baby girl in October and I am thrilled to get to go and shower her. Nashville is my second home and will always hold such a special place in my heart.

I left my hometown of Houston, Texas in 1997 to go to this strange city to attend Belmont University. I had heard such wonderful things about their music program and thought that it would be a great fit. When I arrived I knew no one. It was just me and the city. It was scary and overwhelming but after some sleepovers with my childhood friend, Lindsay (who also uprooted to move to Tennessee and lived 45 minutes away), Nashville and I became the best of friends! I remember the moment I felt like I belonged there...I was coming back to school from a holiday in Houston and as my roommate and I were driving from the airport back to our dorm, we past a billboard for a home builder on I-65. It was a red door with a porch light that actually lit up and it read "Welcome Home". I remember feeling over come with the feeling that I was...home. It's a southern town with friendly people and beautiful countrysides. I really like the Nashville skyline because it is so distinct and recognizable. There is this one building that has two big pointy elements sticking up off it. In college we referred to it as "The Batman Building". I got to spend a couple of evenings backstage at The Ryman downtown, which for those of you who don't know is where the Grand Ole Opry first started. I remember being in the downstairs corridors outside the dressing rooms and I could feel the history of the artists who had been there through the years. The only thing that I could think to do was call my Dad because he was the one person I knew would appreciate the power of that moment in that place. I love that I have a history of firsts in that town. Casey moved there soon after I did, we got engaged in Centennial Park downtown, I got my first "real" job in Franklin at a record label, we bought our first house in Nashville and welcomed our first beautiful baby into that house. I love that we started our lives together there and had only each other to depend on. I love that I have a city to call my own, that I know my way around and can play tour guide to my friends and family when we're there. I love the hills, the trees, the colors, the smells and the oodles of friends that I left there and welcome any chance to go back and visit. Here I come, 'ol friend :)