Walk the Walk: Mary Mary on Appreciating the Smaller Things

Yesterday was a good day. It was a completely filled day, an exhausting, maybe even an overwhelming day, but there was so much good that it was almost hard to take it all in.

The day began early with meetings. Then rehearsals. Then more rehearsal. Then it was time for the transformation (oh, that was Tina and Erica turning into Mary Mary with the help of our glam squad: hair, make-up, and wardrobe). Erica might be, but Tina definitely ain’t nearly as glamorous as Mary, so we have to transform, lol.

Then there were interviews in the middle of getting hair and make-up, when we already had about 1 hour less time than we needed to prepare. All the while receiving constant pressure from our manager and team to make sure we stayed on schedule. Then there was red carpet pictures and interviews.

Then the performance. Then there was the wrap up interview to the cameras that would be following us, capturing the entire day from the time we left our rooms that morning until we returned after the award show. It was certainly a big day.

There are so many major and minor details that go into preparation for days like this, that I can’t begin to list them all. It’s certainly perceived as glitz and glamour and just living the good life, and to some to degree it is, but that’s certainly not all it is. It is really work. It’s work day after day after day with no going home to your families and your own bed at night. And no weekends off. And no matter how you feel, or what may be happening in your personal life, no matter if you’re tired, no matter what, you’re expected to be in great spirits, smiling for everyone, the team helping you, the cameras taping you, the fans watching you from start to finish.

We also have to maintain a clear head so we can remember all the important things for red carpet: who/what you’re wearing (from head to toe, including jewelry and the purse) for all the style and fashion questions, and you must remember all the talking points for the red carpet (the thing we’ve recently done, are currently doing, and what we have coming up in the near future). You just have to be prepared, ready and ‘ON’ from the moment you leave your hotel room in the morning.

There were so many awesome things about yesterday. The reason for it all was that we were invited to sing a tribute to a legend, a music icon, who we totally admire. And not just any song, one of her biggest hits. And it just happened to be the hit we preferred to sing. YES! We were also up for 2 awards. One of our interviews was actually a surprise revelation that we’d be honored at a HUGE music event that we had gone to countless times before to honor other artist or prominent people in this business.

And by the time we actually got to the award show, we knew we’d get to see many other artists perform that we enjoy and respect. For us, this is usually the highlight because we’re such major fans of good music and true artistry. We stand up, clap, dance, yell and act like we’re at all the concerts that we never have time to attend throughout the year. So we take it all in in one night and enjoy every moment of it. I mean, could yesterday get any better?

Funny thing about it is, throughout the entire day, the fact that I was exhausted beyond explanation 2 hours into our 14-hr day, and the fact that I missed my kids and husband like crazy, consumed my head space. Although we were completely privileged, honored, and humbled by all that yesterday entailed, I really wish I had time for a 45-min nap, or could kiss my husband or chase my kids through my house, just once, to give me that motivation or boost of energy that I needed to make it through the day.

Now we were out here living the life that many would almost give theirs for, but I just wanted a nap, my husband, and my babies… oh, and perhaps a good meal to avoid getting that hunger headache (cause there’s never enough time to eat on these kinds of hectic days).

These are the little things I’m talking about: a nap, a kiss, playing with my kids, sitting and eating a meal. In our line of works, these are the little things we miss and long for the most, even on the days that, career-wise, may seem to be the best of your life. It’s almost hard to make it through hectic days without, at least, the memory of or the promise of at least one of these little things.

Now when we’re sitting at the house, these little things don’t seem as special or as important as they are. But the minute we leave home and our work scenarios don’t afford us these little things, we realize how important and not so little, these things really are.

Unfortunately, we were not able to indulge in any of these little, very necessary, things yesterday. So we grabbed an almond or bite of a grilled chicken breast, drank lemonade or water, munched on a protein bar or chip when we could. And when this amazing yet exhausting day called for but did not permit a moment alone, we simply pulled out our phones and listened to a saved voicemail from our husbands and our babies or watched a short home video. And you know what, those seemingly little things were the most necessary things to help bring the smile back, reenergize us, and refocus our attention to all the many blessings God allowed to be a part of our professional lives.

So yesterday really was a good day. No, it was a great day, a fantastic day! And every big and little (but not really little) part of it made it as amazing as it was. And now, this time when I go back home to home cooked meals, my warm bed, my loving husband, and my energetic kids, I’m gonna thank God for the things that can often be overlooked or under appreciated. An amazing career is the best but so is my family, a good meal, and my own warm bed.

Dear God,

We thank you for our gift, the ability to write and sing music that impacts the world. We thank you for the honor of being asked to sing a tribute to a legendary musical icon. We thank you for winning one of the 2 awards we were blessed to be nominated for. We thank you for a career that is notable enough for cameras that want to follow us and capture a day in our life. We thank for all the professionals on our team that help us and enable us to do our job well. We thank you for the voicemails from our husbands and children checking on us and telling us they love us. We thank you for our phones that house the home videos that keep us connected to our families and helps us smile when we’re exhausted, overwhelmed, and homesick. We thank you for the incredible families, warm beds and home cooked meals we get to go back to after every work trip. We thank you for the all the many big and little (but not really little) blessings that you afford us year after year. You’re an awesome God.

Love, your girls

Mary Mary