Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Happy


The crickets are lulling the world to sleep here in the Tree Streets tonight. My boys and my Glediator are at peace in Dreamland. I came home late from a performance I participated in at the Covey Center downtown. I wasn't at my best, but as I sit here in the dark at my kitchen table, I feel so utterly contented that the evening's foibles have now evaporated from my memory. All that remains is the swelling happiness in my gut. Why? I honestly don't know. I just feel so happy to be alive, to make music and share it with people; happy to know and love so many of you beautiful friends. I'm happy that I can show up, be authentic and let that be enough. Goodnight.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Concert on Monday!

Photo by Mindy Gledhill. That's right.

My dear friend Kendra Lowe is a ridiculous talent. You can often see her in various bands in the background, playing keys, violin and banjo. In fact, many of you probably saw her on American Idol this season playing in David Archuleta's band on one of his featured returns to the show. A generous sponsor came forward and told Kendra it was high time she did a concert of her own. He booked the Covey Center and sure enough, you can see Kendra Lowe in concert on Monday, Sept. 27th (probably TODAY but the time you read this).

I will be performing a few songs with Kendra. Other special guests include Truman and David Osmond. If you are looking for the perfect way to spend FHE, look no further. Here are the details:

Where: The Covey Center, 425 West, Center St., Provo, UT
When: Sept. 27th, 7:00 p.m.
Tickets: $10/person or $30 for a family pass. Call (801) 852-7007 or visit www.coveycenter.org

See you there!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Pumpkinfest!



As a child, I watched in wonder as my older sister Jenny climbed onto the roof and planted peas in the muck of the gutters. The peas grew and we ate them up. She always had a fascination with gardening, going so far as to claim the wild mint leaves that grew out back as her own. It comes as no surprise that today she is the founder and steward of the Historic Sandy Community Garden. Our family's favorite Fall tradition is Jenny's Pumpkinfest, held at the garden. You'll find the most exotic looking gourds, exquisite heirloom pumpkins, hand crafted gifts, live music and food.

The invitation reads:

The air is crisp. Leaves are falling. Orange pumpkins beckon you, their faces blank with autumn's welcome. Come pick your pumpkin from our very own patch. Choose from a wide selection of organically-grown traditional and heirloom varieties. Stay to enjoy live music, free activities for kids, hand-crafted gifts for sale, and tasty harvest treats. All proceeds go to fund the 2010 growing season.

Starts Saturday, September 26th at 2:00 p.m.
Ends at 8:00 p.m.
Historic Sandy Community Garden
500 E. Locust St. (about 8840 S.)
Sandy, UT

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Chuck-A-Rama


Lately I've treated my life as if it were some sort of Chuck-A-Rama, loading my plate with a smorgasbord of commitments. The only problem is, I stuff my face with as much as I can of each selection, but then I'm too full and too sick to finish the rest. I don't plan to keep this up much longer. Does anyone out there have any advice on making life more efficient without bailing on your commitments?

Thursday, September 17, 2009

On the Road Again

BEFORE (the start of our last road trip in Idaho).


Have you ever been trapped in a car for hours on end with half a dozen men with southern drawls? Well you should try it out sometime. Quite the life altering experience. This weekend I will visit Idaho (Rexburg on Friday, Idaho Falls on Saturday) with my southern brothers from different mothers doing songs from an album I participated on called "Trek." It's been close to a year since I last performed with these gentlemen and I think my stint as a quasi-country artist has come to an end. In other words, this is a rare opportunity. These guys always draw HOARDS of people to their shows, so act fast. They won't disappoint. For more details, visit http://www.nashvilletributeband.com (Anyone live in Treemonton? We'll bee there on Monday!)


AFTER (the end of our last road trip in Idaho. Oh my.)

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Office Space

My sister, Lindsey sketches a portrait on the chalkboard wall at my office.

So, I have this office in downtown historic Provo. I go there periodically to write music, but mostly to feel all grown up and important. I've been sharing it with a dear friend and it has worked out so well with our flexible schedules. However, it is now time for her to move on. Thus, I am searching for a new friend who might be in need of some office space. I am very good at sharing and will make it easy for you to come and work with plenty of your own quiet time. If you are interested, please email me with questions regarding rent price (it's cheap!). You can send an email to mindy@mindygledhill.com.

I share my all of my innermost thoughts with my sculpture Allen (he's made of allen wrenches.) He'll listen to yours too.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

A Blind Insight

Photo by Jenny Winkel


On Friday afternoon, I pulled out out of the parking lot after a visit with a pediatric ophthalmologist. One look in the rear view mirror showed a snapshot of my beautiful son, slouched over in the back seat. His left eye was covered up with a sticky patch while his right eye strained to see out of his new glasses.

"It's a real shame this wasn't taken care of earlier," the doctor reprimanded me. "Your son is legally blind in his right eye and if you don't keep his left eye patched up all day, every day for at least the next six months, he's going to hate you by the time he's twenty."

Don't you love it when people use guilt as a motivational tool? As if learning that my child was nearly blind in one eye didn't make me want to cry a river already.

Jackson didn't feel much like going back to school, so we ran a few errands at a strip mall, one of which was a haircut to get his shaggy skater boy hair out of his already strained eye. Another real bummer. We both loved his long hair. He was so worried; worried about being made fun of, about looking stupid, and about the notion of being blind if he didn't follow doctor's orders. As we drove away from Fantastic Sam's I tried to be positive.

"You know, I saw a story on TV about a little boy who was born with no legs, but now he runs races with special prosthetic legs. He had such a great attitude about it too. At least it's just your eye and it's going to get a lot better!"

(Don't you love it when people use guilt as a motivational tool?) Just then, I turned a corner and came to a stop as a blind man stepped out in front of our car to cross the street. No joke. With dark glasses and walking stick extended, he gracefully guided himself to the other side. Jackson's jaw dropped.

"Mom! No way! That was not a coincidence. Heavenly Father just did that for me!"

I was just as surprised by my son's immediate ability to point out the hand of God in his life as I was to see the blind man crossing the street at such an opportune moment. Unreal.

After we arrived home, Jackson was tired from the long morning at the doctor's. He nestled into the leather sofa and turned on his favorite cartoon, "Arthur." The title of this particular episode? "Arthur's Eyes." The cartoon started out blurry, giving the viewer a sense of how Arthur saw the world before he learned he needed glasses. He was clumsy, had a hard time with his friends and in his class room -- all of the same things my son has been dealing with at school. Thirty seconds into the show, Jackson slowly turned his head to me and said, "Ok. This is weird. Now I know Heavenly Father is REALLY doing this for me!"

For the rest of the day, I could not shake from my mind, the way in which God enabled my son to see spiritual truths through physical blindness.

"And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God may be manifest in him." John 9:1-3

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Touchpoint!

Photo courtesy of Brad Luppino Photography

See the beautiful woman in the center of this photo? If you have an etsy store, run a business from home or work as the CEO of a large corporation, you will want to know her. I had the blessing of touring orphanages in Bulgaria last March with Kelly Anderson. That's a whole different story which you can read about here. But when she isn't helping to run a non-profit organization that aids orphans, she is running her own organization, Startup Princess, which helps women entrepreneurs to get their business off the ground and empowers them to be successful at what they do. Kelly has organized a conference called Touchpoint, on Friday (yes, this Friday, the 11th) where you can attend valuable workshops and network with Utah's finest female entreprenuers from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. With a lineup of nationally acclaimed women in business, you can learn about a range of topics from business strategies to finding balance with business and family. I will be there, ready to learn new skills to take my business savvy to a new level. You can register and look at the courses offered here. Hope to see you there!

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Brown and Dirty - White and Nerdy


Over Labor Day weekend, my boys did nothing but play in the mud for two days straight. I was busy writing music and doing oodles of homework, so I let them run wild. At one point, I went out to check on them and my next-door-neighbor, Luhi, was wallowing in the mire like a hog right along side them. Awesome. Then I went out again after a while and found the Glediator soaking in the ooze. After six hours of homework at the close of my Labor day, that mud was looking mighty fine to me, and I convinced Luhi's wife, Fauneil to hop in with me. It was quite the liberating experience and I felt young and spry.

However, due to all the heavy textbooks in my bacpack after the first week at school, I recently threw out my back. After much resistance, I finally broke down and purchased a backpack on wheels today. I am not feeling so spry anymore. The Glediator danced around the kitchen, bumping and grinding while serenading me with Weird Al's "White and Nerdy" song in honor of my rolling backpack. So I guess, in the blink of an eye I went from awesome, brown and dirty, to seriously white and nerdy. If you see me rolling along with my backpack, please, just look away.



Friday, September 4, 2009

Timpfest Success

Backstage with the storytellers! From left: Bill Lepp, Barbara McBride-Smith, Bill Harley, John McCutcheon and Me.

A HUGE thanks to all of you who came out to see me perform at the Timpanogos Storytelling festival! Weren't the storytellers fab?

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Thank You


I love you people. I have read and reread each of your comments on my last post and came away with a wealth of valuable information. Thanks a million for your support and empathy. I'm feeling so very confident that all will be well.

Peace and Love,

Mindy