Time to Kill. Or Redeem.

I'm sitting in the St. Louis airport with 90 minutes to kill. As I type that statement it hits me what an awful phrase that is - time to kill. How in the world did that become a thing?  

And being the word nerd that I am, now I'm writing this blog about something completely different than what I had intended. I'm not normally this flexible so I'm going to take this as a sign of maturity and run with it. 

I mentioned in my last post that I've been accused of biting off more than I can chew. At least that's the casual observer's perspective. Whatever. I'm pretty much over concerning myself with other people's opinions of how I spend my time. My definition of rest may not look like yours, and your definition of productivity might not look like mine. You might choose to spend 90 minutes in an airport nursing a beer and watching an NBA game. Or maybe you'd walk the concourse looking for the perfect snack to take on your next flight. Me, I'm sitting at gate E24 writing a blog. There is no right or wrong here, friends. 

I'm on my way home from a songwriting getaway with a couple of dear friends. We typically write online once a week, but a few months ago we decided to try and arrange for a mini-retreat where we could settle into a cabin somewhere and write as much as we could with the time we had. After 2 solid days of writing, I'm headed home with a catalog that's filled with 7 more songs and more importantly, a soul that is overflowing with gratitude for the people with whom I wrote the songs.

These particular songwriters are like me in that we understand the importance of redeeming the time. I think hardship makes you feel that in increasing measure, and between the three of us, life hasn't always been kind the past few years. We've experienced significant loss; a lot of struggle. But out of that hardship has come a desire to work hard, doing what we love, because you just never know...

Although my brain is mush from wrangling words and melodies these past couple of days, I can't help but surrender to the compulsion I have to sit here at my computer and write. So, do whatever you want with the time you have. Kill it. Redeem it. Drink a beer. Grab a snack. Or write a blog. Sleep. Run. Rest. Go. I'll let you do you with the time you have and I'll do me with the time I have.  And as for me, I'm gonna write at gate E24, probably write on the plane, likely think about songs on the way home, and then when my head hits the pillow, I'll pray for a good night's rest. Then, when I wake up I will do my best to redeem the next 24 hours I'm given, grateful for the grace of a new day. 

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