Musings from Cornerstone music festival (a little bit late)

Here's what I shared at our blogging seminar at Cornerstone music festival--I hope it's okay to post it now, since I actually wrote it a week ago.

At Cornerstone, I've found I can feel isolated or welcomed. Isolated, as I hide in our air-conditioned camper, preparing meals, cleaning--for my family, I tell myself--as I take on the role of mother-martyr. I take comfort in the fact that my children are enjoying music they like--my daughter makes new friends and can get her shopping fix in at the merchandise tent--my husband fills his mind and soul at the excellent teaching seminars.

I am really not too lonely--I revel in the delights and discoveries that my family experiences in this nurturing, yet challenging environment. I venture out, too--enjoying my walks across the vast camping city that is Cornerstone. I even attend seminars that cause me to put pen to paper--maybe eventually fingers to the keyboard.

I recall past Cornerstones--our first--driving in at 4 am, searching the unfamiliar sprawling acres for a patch of land to claim for 4 days. I remember seeing all the colorful crowns of assorted hair styles--the tattos, the "goth" clothes--and wondered what attracted these outsiders to a Christian festival, then feeling glad that they can come to hear the Good News. Now, my 15-year-old son has been sporting a mohawk of ever-changing colors for months. He was saved at age 5.

I have learned a lot about diversity--not just as a catch word, but about accepting others who may look vastly different and even think very differently from me. Even though we may span the globe and the theological spectrum here at Cornerstone, we can still celebrate our oneness in Christ through a variety of media and expressions.