I wonder if y’all feel the same way I do:)……………………………….Do you have stories, places and funny moments you find pleasure in re-visiting no matter how many times you have been there? No matter how many times you have heard a certain story and you know each turn and climax it thrills you to hear it again? No matter how many times you have visited a certain location, every time you return it just feels right and special? No matter that a funny story has brought tears to your eyes and made you laugh until your stomach muscles ache, every time you tell it the tears come again and those muscles seemed almost toned by now?………………….I have many of these times in my life……more than I could tell. One of those places that I always love to re-visit and somewhere I have grown up going is Silver Dollar City. No matter how many times I walk into that park it always feels just like it did when I was 10 years old. Maybe it is certain smells that take me back to my childhood. The smell of hot asphalt to this day makes me think of Silver Dollar City. Or maybe it is the sweet aroma coming out of the taffy shop that lured us as children in for that “one piece of free taffy!” Of course, it never really stopped at the “one piece of free taffy” and very soon we had those shiny little silver buckets in our hands collecting every imaginable variety of taffy! Not just the traditional favorites like banana, orange, cherry or anything sour (for Emily and Matthews taste buds:) But we would venture out to the new and wild flavors! Of course our little buckets filled much faster than we ever realized and before you knew it, we had enough taffy for a small army!!! Or maybe it is the shops that remind me of special times. The glass shop where we would stand and watch the artisan make beautiful works of art. Perhaps it was the Homestead Cabin and the Homestead Pickers and the music that I recall from my childhood and their friendship that has grown through the years. Maybe it is the rides that with each wild and crazy turn seem to take me right back to when I was ten and in that same seat! Whatever combination of these…..or maybe all of these……………none the less it takes me back and feels so right…..I love it! This last weekend we were back at Silver Dollar City for another 3 day gig. What a wonderful time once again!
Ready for the day!
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Rise and Shine, setting up time!!!
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Ok:)……so this is not the greatest commercial effort ever!!!:):)….I know!:)
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Acapella number at the Gazebo
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Little Bubbie:)…….or so we call him:)
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All we need are the musicians:)…….
Ok:)…so this has nothing to do with Silver Dollar City, but I must share it with y’all! As a musician I sometimes have these dreams that are simply nightmares of what you would never want to happen on stage!!! I mean…..these can be real nightmares!!! Just to give you an idea of the content of these dreams……it has involved………suddenly being unable to sing, almost missing a concert, band members not playing at most important times, me being suddenly unable to slap the bass, band members being in the wrong outfits and a show is about to begin…………I mean bad stuff!!! So……the other night I have this dream that I am playing my bass and suddenly like out of nowhere my bass just like starts falling apart!!!! The neck falls off and then the back…..suddenly the glue was like not glue at all!!! Here I was with my bass in pieces!!! It was terrible!……..I think I could write a book of all these “musician nightmares” and it would be one wild ride!!! I must remember these are just dreams!!!:):)
Singing from the soul
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Warming up in the morning
…………………………………………………………………………………Now on Friday morning our first show was rather damp! It was actually raining most of the show. I so admire the brave and sweet people who sat out there with ponchos and umbrellas for our set!!! Thank you! Thankfully it cleared up and the rest of the day was absolutely gorgeous! Saturday morning came and so did the rain! Here we were again with our first show with chilly temps and rain showers! Once again I thank those dear folks who gathered around in the rain to listen to our show! Saturday cleared up and we had an amazing day at Silver Dollar City!
Southern Raised and our dear friends Mr. and Mrs. Don and Kate Zahner
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Southern Raised down at Outlaw Run……No:)…..we didn’t ride it……we were getting a frozen root beer:)…….There were a lot of brave souls down there!
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Southern Raised with Nonny, Pappy and Don and Josh Heston at a local restaurant after a day at Silver Dollar City
………. You know…..friends are a dear and special gift! Something God gave us to help us in this life……encourage, enjoy, laugh with and spend special moments with. Something most special indeed. Want to share a poem on friendship……………………..
“Glad to Call You Friend”
I stopped today in a quite place
secluded and alone.
I couldn’t help but see your face
something warmed me to the bone.
What was the warm sensation
swelling up deep within?
What absent conversation
left me wistful yet again?
I laughed when I thought of it
of stories shared and smiled.
Though no one heard me laughing
and no one with me smiled.
Then I looked beside me
at nothing but the air.
In this moment I could see
a treasure beyond compare.
My friend you’re what was missing
a gift from God above!
You laugh, you love, your listening
sharing memories bound by love.
My friend, I now must tell you
please listen yet again.
You are a gift from God in Heaven
and I’m sure glad to call you friend!
-Lindsay Ann Reith-
Mr. Don Heston invited us out to eat at a local restaurant and we sure had a wonderful time together! We were joined by Nonny and Pappy and Mr. Heston’s son, Josh. It was truly a wonderful evening of relaxing and laughing together.
Nonny and Pappy in between our shows……we love y’all!
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Morning on the square
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Laying down a number!
……………..So:)….April 1st was the other day and I guess we all know what that means!!! April Fools!!! OK:)……Matthew was the initiator of these pranks, but you cannot expect us to not jump in and participate! Our April Fools jokes involved items like packing tape, shaving cream, anonymous txt messages with outrageous messages, marbles, kitchen spray nozzles and twist ties, light bulbs removed and doors locked!!!! I gave you the ingredients and you can let your imagination run free to figure out how we put them to use:):):)!!! Let us say we had way too much fun!!!………Hope you had a delightful day of April Fools as well!!!………………………………………………………………………..
Southern Raised and our sound man, Mr. Neal………….Thank you for an amazing job and all your hard work!!!
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Matt checking out the new frozen root beers!…….the report is:)……………..it is just mighty tasty!!!!
………………………….Life is not always good times and smiles, often in this world we are met with heartache and tears. Southern Raised felt this very close to home during our weekend at Silver Dollar City. Sarah had a wonderful little pet Dachshund named Gretchen that was about 15 years old. I am sure you all know how close a little pet can grow to your heart and the pain of saying goodbye is harder than you could express, unless you have been through it. Sarah was up all night with Gretchen and on the morning of our last day at Silver Dollar City at about 7am, little Gretchen passed away. She died in Sarah’s arms and our whole family gathered around. This was so very difficult and painful all by itself, but everyone having to gain composure to head out and play at Silver Dollar City was an added challenge. Death is something that is so painful, even if it is a dear little family pet, and I so look forward to the day in Heaven when there will be no death at all. No death of family and friends and no death of even the little pets we hold dear. It is amazing for me to think back to the creation of the world and the Garden of Eden. God created this beautiful world and He made humans to care for it, but the Bible says He created the animals for the pleasure of man. God knew the joy they would bring, the companionship they would give, the protection and the love they would devote to you. He knew this would bring us joy and pleasure in this life and He made them as a gift to us…….just like an extra…..” I know this will make you happy.” So, it is no surprise that when these companions pass, it hurts, hurts deeply……………………….I wanted to share a pic of this difficult time we just experienced………………………………………………..
Sarah and Gretchen in her last hours
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Steppin’ back and thanking our audience at the closing of a show……..
In concluding, I think this blog reminds us that life has trials, tears and hard times. We have all been there. But there are precious gifts and happy memories that God showers on us along the way. Like friends, music, places we enjoy and memories we treasure…….just to name a very few. I thank God for being with me through the tears and blessing me with sweet gifts! Thank you to all of those who came out and were a part of our weekend at the City!!! We love each one of you and look forward to seeing y’all later this year on down the road!! This next week finds us in Arkansas and Mississippi! Keep checking in and I will keep y’all updated on this trip down South! God bless y’all!…………Lindsay
