Another night of storytelling magic unfolded today, this time during a book signing hosted by author Wendy Olsen (left in above pic), who was completing a 20-stop book tour that took her to several countries and a number of cities. An intimate group of fans and friends turned out at the historic Astor Hotel as Wendy shared readings from her book, stories of her extraordinary life, but especially her 20 years living in Italy.
One of the most impressive Magical Moments occurred when Wendy shared that the hospital ward where she gave birth to her son, was the same ward where Ernest Hemingway was treated as a wounded soldier. Not such a big deal, you might be thinking, until you learned that Wendy was inspired to layer quote after notable Hemingway quote in her book, almost as if the long-dead author took the opportunity to expand his audience of readers beyond those who'd read his books!
I was actually there to, yes, support Wendy, she's a friend of Lori's, but also to see what the whole book-signing gig thing was like. About two weeks ago a contact of Lori's offered her the chance to have a book signing at the Astor as well, so I wanted to see the venue we'd be in, too. When I arrived, Wendy had just begun her book-signing opening monologue, passionately sharing stories of her life in Italy. At first I found myself wondering if I had anywhere near that same level of passion to share with others, then it happened...the band began playing.
After a sharing an Italian buffet meal, we were all sitting around a large table, talking, when Wendy noticed my fascination with the musicians. She went over and invited them to join us! When the discussion shifted to music, musicians, and concerts, I came alive and found my Passion! It's not easy for me to let go and share, but I'm slowly coming out of my shell and learning to accept myself and recognize some of my eccentricities as gifts! When the band began playing again, we all moved to be near them and the next thing you knew, many of us were dancing!
Before ending this post, I have to say something about the band. These were two journeyman musicians, full-time professionals whose gifts were evident. The singer has a beautiful, versatile voice and also played the guitar well. The violin player had excellent technique and mixed in classical sounds with covers of a wide range of other artist's music. What I found remarkable was how the nature of the craft of their art had continued to evolve over the years into these new, rich expressions of innovative sounds. They weren't splattering paint on canvas, but they were true artists nevertheless! And, the whole artist thing is seldom about money. When they began playing, the room they were in was practically empty, but play they did, performing to high standards, an effort only a true calling could bring forth.
My spirit was free, I'd found my speaker's voice, I was dancing, the glass of Chianti went down slow & easy, and all was Right and Magical with my World!
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