April 20, 2026
Personal Reflections
The more I do this work, the more this infamous quote from “Dan in Real Life” rings true:
If we are really honest with ourselves, most of the time our plans do not work out as we’d hoped. So instead of asking our young people “what are your plans, what are you planning to do with your life?” Maybe we should tell them this: plan to be surprised.
When we plan to be surprised, that is where real adventures begin. Though I must warn you, every adventure is bound to have a bump in the road along the way. Mine came in the form of my rearview mirror falling and breaking off my windshield. This happened on the way to review Masterworks Choral Ensemble’s “The Searching Soul” on Saturday April 18th.
I was so looking forward to this concert, and did everything I could to jimmy it back into place, but all my efforts failed. Knowing it would be dangerous to drive at night with a hanging rearview mirror, I had to call to the Washington Center to release my ticket back to the public, and then message Masterworks about the last minute cancellation. Being extremely kind about it, they reassured me that I made the right call by prioritizing safety.
I turned around and went back to my mom’s to watch“Grease” with her, which I had not seen in a long time (even though I have seen it millions of times). Singing along to the songs, quoting the movie together, laughing at childhood memories surrounding this film, all were priceless experiences that I would have missed out on if this had not happen.
We had a temporary duct tape solution the next day that looked promising, but ultimately failed (as seen in the photograph).
The car is going into the shop this week after many efforts of trying to fix it ourselves. While my dad was working on it at one point, I decided to do a little tidying, and I found old rat turds under the passenger and drivers seat! YUCK! I don’t have a messy car, so this was a major surprise! I vaccumed that up ASAP!
Here is my point, if my mirror didn’t break, I wouldn’t have watched Grease with my mom or discovered other problems that needed to be fixed. Sometimes these surprises or bumps in the road lead us to the exact places we need to be.
There is something enately charming and metaphorical about the idea of the “rearview mirror” breaking off. I will explore that another time, but for today, remember that good can be found in the midst of challenging circumstances
… Oh and that “grease is the word!”
This Week in the Arts
Coming up this week, I will be publishing three pieces in my JOLT Column including:
A review of Olympia Symphony Orchestra’s Season Finale “Move”
Conversation with Josephine Keefe and Ashlie Blaske about Harlequin Production’s “Where the Summit Meets the Stars”
A sneak peek of Ballet Northwest’s “Swan Lake”
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