It was my turn to teach the lesson this last Tuesday at our monthly NSAI meeting at the Bluestem Bistro in Manhattan. The little apple. The big apple is New York City and the little apple is Manhattan, Ks. 

     I believe when you are teaching that you need to share a story that relates to the subject you are talking about. This concept is nothing new. Jesus used it when he talked about spiritual things. He talked about the missing coin, the prodigal son, lost sheep and planting crops. My story is about golf balls. Golf  balls and songwriting. What in the world do those two things have to do with each other?

     For those of you that don't know me very well, I am cheap. I am cheap and golf balls are expensive. I remember the first time I went and played golf at a real golf course with my buddy Rick. I was going to find lost golf balls so in the future I would not need to buy them. I was not having any luck finding any golf balls. I was looking in easy to  get to area. The middle of the fairway or  next to the cart path. I wanted it to be easy and I looked in places that were convenient and easy. I had no luck.

     I know where and how to find a golf ball now. I look for golf balls where I lost my golf ball. If I hit my golf ball there and lost it, you can bet other golfer are doing it too. Usually, golf balls are in tall grass, weeds, poison ivy, buried in leaves or at the bottom of the lake. Sometimes I may not find my ball but I will find somebody else's ball. I will stop looking and consider this par for the hole. A good game of golf is when you have more golf balls at the end of the game than you had at the start of the game. 

     How do you find good ideas to write about as a songwriter?  It is the same as looking for golf balls. A lot of great songs are written about the messy parts of our lives. One of my favorite songs is by T. Graham Brown. It is called Wine into water. It is about his struggle with the bottle. One line is  Can you help me turn the wine back into water? I could try to write this song but I could never do it as well as T. Graham Brown. The reason is because I don't struggle with alcoholism. It would not feel real or authentic.

      I could also write about happy times in my life. We all have happy times, Times when we are in love, getting married, the birth of children or grandchildren. These are happy things that everybody experiences, If you tell your story, other people have had the same type of stories. Their story might be a little different but very similar. People want to hear a song that is about them not you, but when you write a story about you it resonates with them. (If it is a great story.)

     Songs are like golf balls. They are hidden and you have to look hard to find them. They are not out in the open. You will find them as you are living your life. The more weeds and tall grass and the deeper the water is the best place to find those great ideas. Remember that the next time you are going through a difficult struggle in your life. Maybe God is giving you an opportunity to share your story to help other people get through their difficult times. Good luck finding those golf balls. 

    My daughter Heather called me last Saturday night and wanted to know if I wanted to go to Country Stampede. She had free tickets if I wanted to go. I glanced outside at the weather and you could tell that the weather was going to be a factor in my decision. I asked," Who's playing tonight? "" Jason Aldean." was her reply. :Yeah, I'd like to go, maybe it won't rain."  Those were my famous last words. 

    Yeah, I might win the lottery. I might get a big raise. I might get promoted to CEO of Kroger. I might write a hit song and quit my grocery store job next week. So  I grabbed my umbrella and out the door I ran to go hear my favorite Jason Aldean song. The truth. Talking about the truth.  If you are taking an umbrella, deep down you know it's gonna rain.

      We arrived at the concert and were parked over by Lawrence. Lawrence is the next city east of Topeka by about 20 miles. It just felt like twenty miles after walking all day at work. We paid fifteen dollars to park. Not a bad deal. Heather, her husband Anthony, and my two grandkids, Alyssa,  Aiden and me going to a concert for fifteen bucks.

       Looking good. We made it to the concert and no rain. We set up our lawn chairs and sat down to enjoy some music. We listed to three songs and the rain started. Over the intercom an announcement was made. "Please clear the pit area and move away from the stage. A thunderstorm is headed this way. Please go to the campgrounds and seek cover. The Jason Aldean concert will be backed up but will still take place.

       Decision time. Do we walk all the way back to our car? What if it blows over quickly? We decided to take cover in one of the tents that hosted live music. It was a big white carnival looking tent with open side but a place to stay kinda dry. The storm hit like a fury. The wind was blowing, thunder boomed and lighting lit up the sky. Alyssa, my eleven year old granddaughter started crying because she was scared. I was too, I wasn't sure that  tent was the best place to take cover. Especially since about a month ago, I had saw my niece's house that had been blown away by the tornado that hit Linwood, Ks. 

       We all huddle together trying to stay dry as the rain poured down. Praying quietly that the storm would pass over but the rain continued to pour. I noticed the lead singer of the band. He grabbed his acoustic guitar and was getting ready to play a song. I thought, this could be good. It might help to take our minds off of the storm. I was wrong. 

        He started singing a Hank Jr. song called Family Tradition. You all know it, "Tell me Hank why do you drink? Why do you smoke? Why must you live out the songs that you wrote? Yeah, I know all the words to the song but it was definitely the wrong song at the wrong time. The crowd started singing off key and slurring their words as the storm eased up a bit.

         He could of sang, How Great Thou Art,, Amazing Grace, or any one of a hundred hymns. Didn't we  want God to protect us in this situation? And the best song that he could come up with was Family tradition. This was one of those defining moments. It was time to leave the safety of the tent and head for the car. We would trust God for our safety out in the storm.

         God is in control of the storms of your lives. He knows when we are in a bad situation and he is still there. We just need to trust him. He led us safely to our car and  as we sat through the thunderstorm that continued to pour down rain. I am thankful for his safety. It could have been a bad situation if the storm had turned worse. I guess trusting in God is part of my Family Tradition. 

          For Father's Day my kids bought me a Fit Bit. I thought it would be cool to have one and to see how many steps or miles I walk at work. My first day of using my Fitbit  I walked over 17,000 miles with a  goal of 10,000. No wonder my feet hurt. 

          My second day I had even more steps. I worked a full day at  the grocery store and went to the Country Stampede. The Country Stampede is the country music concert that is held in Manhattan, KS. This year it was moved to Topeka because of all the rain at Tuttle Creek Reservoir. It was a long walk from our parking spot to the concert and a wet run back to the car after a thunderstorm canceled the Jason Aldean concert. I probably walked about 17,000 steps at work and I ended the day with 27,446 steps. This would be about 13 miles altogether. 

           Yesterday was my third day, I only had 19,740 steps. Last night, I was looking at my Fitbit and it said that I needed to take a rest. I thought it was strange that a program designed to help me be fit decided that I had done enough exercise. So, I decided to listen to it. Today is my day off and I am resting. It is almost 10:30 and I have taken 314 steps. You don't have to tell me twice to take a rest. 

           It is great to chase our goals and dreams. Sometimes we are doing the work, putting in the miles, taking the steps we need to advance our career and to get our jobs done. There is a time to push and work hard but we also need rest. Taking the time to have fun, listen to the radio, watch a movie, play with your kids or grandkids, or do nothing at all. Maybe you need to listen to my Fitbit and we'll all take a rest. 

     I am typing this as I am watching game six of the NBA finals. I am a fan of the Golden State Warriors. My favorite player is Seth Curry. He is a great shooter and a good role model. One aspect of his game that I love is that he can shoot free throws. I believe if you are in the NBA is that you should be able to make free throws consistently. 

     This has been a rough series for the Warriors. Kevin Durant out with a calf injury and did not play until game 5. Klay Thompson got hurt and was unable to play in game 4. Kevin Durant got hurt in game 5 and had to have an Achilles surgery.  In game six Klay Thompson hurt his knee and had to leave the game in the third quarter. It is now the fourth quarter and the Warriors could win it. They are down by three with about three and a half minutes left in the game. 

     The Warriors may or may not win but they have battled like true Warriors. I love their competitiveness. Playing without two of their star players and still in the game. I love it. 

      We are all going to have obstacles in life. Life is hard. Cars will break down, Paychecks will be short. The AC unit will quit during the hottest day of summer. Your heart will get broken. Wives will leave their husbands. Husbands will cheat on their spouse. Kids will get broken bones riding their bikes. Obstacles are everywhere. 

       The game is down to the wire. Eighteen seconds left and the Warriors are down by 1. Golden State has ten seconds left and are down by one. The Warriors barely lost but I love the way they fought. The lesson for us is we need to keep fighting. God is on our side.  

      Yesterday, I was watching the movie a star is born. It is about a guy who is an established superstar who is falling  in love with a girl. The girl happens to be a struggling singer songwriter who is about to give up on her dreams.  He decides to give her advice on songwriting. I thought it was good so here it is. 

     Bradley Cooper says, Talent comes everywhere. Everybody's talented. Everybody in the bar is talented at one thing or another but having something to say, and a way to say it, so people will listen to it. That is a whole 'nother bag.  Now listen, until you get out there and try to do it, you will never know. That's just the truth. If there's just one reason we are suppose to be here is so people can hear it.

     Sometimes we thing that all it takes to be successful is talent. Talent is over rated. There are better singers out there than alot of the singers that are superstars. I like to watch the Voice and American Idol. Sometimes the contestants are better singers than the superstar judges that are judging them. It takes more than talent. Songwriters got to have something to say. I listen to some songs, ( country and pop) and there is no substance to it. I remember making fun of the song, Walking on Broken glass. Walking on broken glass was repeated and repeated and repeated over and over.

      A good example of having something to say is a song by T. Graham Brown. The name of the song is Wine into Water. He had something to say. Here are the lyrics. 

You've heard a multitude of prayer's on my behalf

I pray one more is not too much to ask.

I've tried to fight this battle by myself

but it's a war that I can't win without Your help.

Chorus- Tonight, I'm as low as any man can go

I'm down and I can't fall much farther

and once upon a time, You turned the water into wine

and now, on my knees, I'm turning to you Father.

Could You help me turn the wine back into water.

       I really like that song. That is a songwriter who really has something to say. If you listen to the song, he has a great way to say it. and people like to listen to it. That is why that song was a hit. 

        Songwriter's need to get out there and play there music. That is the only way you can find out if your songs connect with other people. If there is not a connection, it is time to go back to the drawing board or maybe, you are playing your song to the wrong audience. If you are playing to the wrong audience then you need to be out there playing so you can find out who your audience is. 

        I hope that this has been encouraging as you chase your dream. Even if your dream isn't songwriting. We all need to be chasing  our dream. Remember the way you do your dream is not how somebody else does there dream. Dream chasing is not baking cookies and they are the same size and shape. We are all created different with our own way of how we see and do life. Keep on chasing your dream, your way.