Along with being an artist, singing has been a HUGE part of my life.
Now this my mother would say, I didn't get from her. I think she sings beautifully. But she would tend to disagree I think.
Mom says, I've been singing longer than I've been talking. I believe her. Because if there's one thing I don't know how to do sometimes is keep my mouth shut. She has told me numerous times that I would stand up in my crib, in the dark, and sing my little lungs out. I sympathize--Jordan did the same thing when she was little.
My earliest memories of singing happened when I was quite young--kindergarten or first grade. There are two moments that I can remember clearly. Not sure which happened first so I'll just take a shot in the dark.
The first one I can remember was singing on stage at my elementary school "Greatest Love of All" by Whitney Houston. That was one of my favorite songs, and I loved Whitney Houston. I know there are photos of me on that stage just belting my heart out. I don't remember what it was for but I remember impressing the masses with my ridiculously loud voice and intense vocal range. At that point in my life I don't think I knew the significance--I just knew I loved to sing.
The second I can remember was a song that I actually wrote with a little help from my mother. I actually remember all the lyrics:
Let the sun shine on your face
It will brighten up the place
And bring smiles to all of those
Who wear frowns beneath their nose
Let the moon glow through the night
And keep you safe from fright
As you snuggle down in bed
And let dreams fill up your head
Let the children of the world
Learn to love each boy and girl
Just because of what's inside
Love is something that can't hide
And the world will be much better
As we all live here together
Underneath a sun that shines on you and me
What a wonderful world this could be.
~c 1987 Kearston Dillard
Even at that age, I was pretty hopeful and optimistic. I read that now and I'm smiling because it was a song that really made me feel good to sing. In any case, I won several district awards for it and made my mother and grandmother quite proud.
I wrote another song for a similar competition later, I believe it was 3rd grade or 4th grade. That one was called If I Had a Wish. The song had similar connotations about hope for the world and everyone loving each other. That one too won several awards.
I stopped writing songs for a while after that and really began to focus on my singing. I joined as many choirs as I could--church choirs, school choirs, etc. I was told by many of my choral directors that my vocal range was immense. My voice at that time could travel from tenor to high soprano very easily and I had perfect pitch. I participated in many musicals in grade school and fell in love with my show choir in high school, Cavalier Singers.
When I made it to college, I thought that I was going to be singing professionally someday. But for some reason, a voice in my head said, hey you're never going to make a living at that! (I laugh now because I ended up in theatre but moving on...) So I stopped singing publicly and just kept it to myself.
I still sing. All the time. If you're friends with me on Snapchat you know that to be very true. I love singing to my kids. I sang to both of my kids while they were still warm in my belly and they too have become adorable little singers. Singing is actually a great way to keep yourself grounded. If you believe in chakras there are actually people who believe that singing opens up your chakras which of course allows you to see things in a better light. I actually believe in this. I have several songs that I like to call my "scream it out songs" that when I sing them, they actually force me to have a release of emotions. After singing those, I feel much better.
I can't imagine not having singing as a part of my life. As I look back on this, I realize that without singing, I would not have overcome as much negativity in my life. Singing is, in my opinion one of the best ways to push out all the bad vibes and let in all the good.
If I wasn't at work right now, I'd probably be singing at the top of my lungs.
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