Installment 1B

A year went by.  She had nearly finished the first song.  She was frustrated.  I knew that the project would only get harder for her and not easier.  On the other hand she had learned sooooo much in that year – about structure, about story telling, about character development, about scanning and rhyming and all the principles of good theater music composition.  It was a class in lyric writing after all and not really a collaboration, so, though the going was slow, the knowledge gained was worthwhile.

Week after week we met and on she plowed.  There were times when I could really sense her frustration because she was having a hard time coming up to the standard set, but remember, this was not just the writing of another “I want you/I need you/I love you” song.  This was a world-class idea and I wasn’t going to let her get away with nuttin’.

So finally the first lyric was finished and approved.  There were 3 songs in the concept to write – 2 more to go.  And now it would get even harder.  She would look at me and roll her eyes in exasperation sometimes as if she were on a never-ending treadmill.  But she was learning so much, so we agreed to plow on.

At these frustrating times, when the project felt hopeless, it was always the worth of the idea that drove her on.  She knew (and I knew) that she had a great idea, an idea that was both original and fascinating to explore. A timeless idea that was both ancient and modern in its teachings and a classic story that has been passed down from generation to generation for over two thousand years – simply one of the great miracle stories of all time.  Miracle Of Faith.  Perhaps it would be a miracle if she were to ever finish it, but she kept at it on faith – faith that she was given a grand idea by God and, by God, she was just going to finish it if it took her a lifetime.

She began to work on the second song …

Next: Part 2 – The Concept