AG & Me

I'm going to hijack the boys' blog to tell the story of That Time Their Mama got to Meet Amy Grant.

In case you don't know, this is kind of a big deal.

Here's why:

When I was five years old and living in Anderson, SC, my sister took voice lessons taught by a guy named Joseph Lundkovsky. At least, I think that was his name. His name is immaterial. His impact on my life, however, is significant, because one day, he sent my sister home with a cassette bootleg of Amy Grant's "Age to Age" album.

He gave it to Sissy, I assume, to help her learn some songs, and it worked. We ended up learning the songs - in fact, I'm STILL singing those songs - and, being five, I assumed that the fact that we knew her songs must've meant that we knew her, so pretty much, I grew up thinking Amy Grant and I were best friends.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago. After years of ridicule for my unashamed love for AG, I was told I'd get to meet her before her Greenville concert with Stephen Curtis Chapman. It might surprise you that I received this news with mixed emotions. While I was excited - SO excited - to meet my lifelong hero (and really, REALLY grateful for the opportunity), I also knew that a 33 year-old bubble would burst when she didn't ask me out for a post-show dinner or even look at me with the same kind of recognition that I'd show her.

But that's not how it went down at all. I've been terrified of the total fool I was sure I'd make of myself when I saw her. My parents, my friend Leslie, and I walked into the pre-show meet and greet at the Bi-Lo Center (It'll ALWAYS be the Bi-Lo Center to me). As soon as I saw Amy, I got a little emotional; the tears welled up. "Oh, no," I told my people. "This is gonna be ugly."

Somehow, though, I pulled it together. When she got to our place at the end of the line, I didn't cry. I didn't hug her. I didn't even use the word "obsessed." I just made small chit chat about how we'd both gone to Furman and, "Welcome back to Greenville."

I have never been so proud of myself.

Nor have I ever been more relieved that someone I've loved from afar for so long seems just as lovable in person as she is in the press.

Also lovable was Stephen Curtis Chapman. I didn't really know much about him, until the show, but he definitely won me over at the meet and greet.

When I posted a picture of me and Amy on Facebook, my friend Amanda reminded me that I've now met three of my heroes - Ashley Judd, Toni Collette, and, now, Amy Grant. That hadn't occurred to me, but she's right. As Amy Grant (who sits atop my Hero Hierarchy) might say, "Baby, I'm the Lucky One."