Song Of The Heart

“People do crazy things, when they’re in love.”-Meg (Hercules)

Possibly my favorite quote of all time. Maybe because it’s so true, love can persuade even the sanest of people to do the unthinkable. The grip-that binding damn grip that nearly gravitates you toward your loved one, almost like a druggie needing his latest fix.

For whatever the reason love was numb in my mind. The thought of love made me gag, which was strange considering I’d never personally had my heart broken. No, I’d never let any relationship I was ever in get out of hand.

I was guarded, big surprise. Maybe my brick wall was up due to how I was raised. My mother and father never really loved one another; it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that one out. Mom would scream at dad and dad would throw something in return-not at mom of course.

My mother always told me to never trust boys, ‘they’re evil vile creatures Lex-all they do in life is eat, sleep, and burp. Oh, and break the hearts of innocent young women.’

My father on the other hand was much more nurturing. ‘Women suck Ale; they manipulate and twist everything in their path just to get their way. I hope, oh dear god I hope you wont turn out like your mother.’ He would spit the hate rising from within, ‘But I’m sure you’re much more reasonable then that right Lex?’

Not surprisingly mom and dad divorced.

I was eleven and to young to understand that this was good for them, better then being married to each other at least. In my eleven year old eyes, dad left mom. There was no doubt in my mind, my father left my mother-practically shoving divorce papers into her hands on his way out.

So I was left alone, with my newly single mother and my brothers and sister. Dylan , the oldest, was fifteen at the time and as far as he was concerned never really showed much emotion to the situation. That’s probably because he knew better then anyone else that this was the best decision our father had ever made.

My sister Megan was the second oldest. She was thirteen at the time, she took it the hardest. She was a big daddies girl. Anywhere daddy went she just had to go, every award she had ever one, any term paper she’d ever written, and any movie she want to watch-she went to daddy, that was how it was plain and simple.

Collin , who happened to be my twin, was just as clueless as I was. He didn’t seem bothered by it much but I could tell, right behind his beautiful green eyes he’d inherited from our father, that he was lost.

Although it seemed like our father walked out of our lives completely, he didn’t. In fact our father did one of the most selfless things we could have ever asked of him. He stayed in the one city he hated and bought a house several blocks away from moms.

It was great. Now mind you San Francisco, the city I grew up in might be small, but that didn’t make the walk to dad’s little shack of a house any easier. Yet it seemed those little hills set my destiny.

I can still picture the steep hills I nearly died walking up clearly, they seemed never-ending. It was that one specific hill on the corner of Union Square I remembered the most. I would pass the beautiful big West Field mall and continue my journey.

That is until I saw the little rent-a-space. It was tiny with a broken ‘open for business’ sign- that was San Francisco for you. But I’ll never ever forget the neon green paper that hung on its window.

Open Mic. Night!

Come get your sing on here at Wesley’s!
Auditions start at 6:30 p.m. every Saturday night,
Actual performances began at 9:30 p.m.
Don’t forget to stop by!

And I didn’t. Sure I was only eleven, but hey that didn’t stop me from walking into a sketchy bar, besides I had Collin by my side. Now I had only sung in front of an audience twice.

One time I was a sub in for the local church choir. Another time was when I auditioned for my middle school’s summer play; I got to play Sandy in Grease. But the minute those powerful notes left my mouth I became a regular.

I suppose that was how it all started. I had just turned thirteen and stopped by my local ‘night job’- if that was what you wanted to call it with my new birthday present, a new Lyon acoustic guitar. Sure it wasn’t the greatest-but it was my baby.

That wasn’t the only birthday surprise I received.

After playing a short set of only five songs I hopped off stage and wiped my face down, the sweat was not flattering. A built, mid forties looking man made his way to the stage. He had jet black hair and warm brown eyes, he introduced himself. He was Mr. Future; well that’s what I called him anyways.

His name was Ed Ronworth, he worked in A&R for Hollywood Records, and to put it lightly he wanted to make me a star. So that night I came home with two things,

My new found confidence and a record contract.