The Stories of Life
Every life has a story worth telling. Listen close, and you'll find yours in mine.
Gifts
When I wrote Gifts, I found myself reflecting on all the things we so easily take for granted. I looked at the trees swaying in the wind, the birds flying overhead, and the people whose lives briefly cross our own. It made me wonder why we're here, what we're meant to learn, and why we've been given such incredible blessings.
As the song unfolds, it becomes much more personal. I realized the greatest gifts in my own life weren't things at all. They were the people God placed beside me—my husband, my family, and the life we've built together. Through the years we've shared laughter, fears, tears, and love. It has reminded me over and over that love isn't something we earn; it's something we're given.
This song is really my way of slowing down long enough to notice the beauty that surrounds us every day. We spend so much of our lives chasing what's next that we often miss the miracles already in front of us. The older I get, the more I realize that the greatest blessings are often the quietest ones—the people we love, the moments we share, the beauty of creation, and the simple gift of another day. Those are the gifts that inspired this song.
The Road of Life
I wrote The Road of Life for a friend who was facing one of life's greatest heartbreaks—the thought of losing the person they loved most. As I imagined their journey, I found myself thinking about the promises we make when we marry someone. We promise to walk through life together, never really knowing where that road will lead.
The song begins with the excitement and uncertainty of two people starting a life together, but it slowly becomes a conversation between husband and wife after one of them has gone home to heaven. Even though death separates them for a time, love doesn't end there. The one who has passed continues to encourage the one left behind to keep living, keep dreaming, and keep believing that they are never truly alone.
For me, this song isn't really about death. It's about love that outlives death. It's about faith, hope, and the belief that the relationships God gives us don't simply disappear—they continue beyond what we can see. I wanted to capture the comfort that comes from knowing that even when the road takes us through grief, it doesn't end there. One day, the journey brings us home.
Meet Me Over the Moon
When I wrote Meet Me Over the Moon, I found myself wondering if every great love story is meant to happen in this lifetime. Sometimes we meet someone who touches our heart so deeply, yet for one reason or another, life leads us down different paths. Timing, circumstances, fear, or simply life itself can leave us carrying feelings that are never fully spoken.
This song reflects a love that was always there but never had the chance to become what it might have been. Rather than dwelling on regret, it holds onto hope—the hope that love is never truly lost and that some connections are simply bigger than the life we're living today.
For me, Meet Me Over the Moon is about believing that not every story ends when we think it does. Some loves remain quietly tucked away in the corners of our hearts, becoming part of who we are. Whether they were meant for this life or the next, they remind us that love has a way of outlasting time itself.
You Think You Know
When I wrote You Think You Know, I was reflecting on how easily we convince ourselves that we have life all figured out. We make plans, fall in love, imagine our future, and believe we know exactly where the road ahead will lead. Then, sometimes in a single moment, everything changes.
This song explores what happens when the life you expected suddenly disappears. Heartbreak has a way of making us question everything we thought we knew. Yet even in those moments, I believe love isn't finished with us. It has an incredible way of finding us again when we're finally ready to receive it.
The remarkable part is that I wrote this song years before my own divorce. At the time, I had no idea how closely these lyrics would one day reflect my own life. Even more surprising was the ending. I wrote about finding love again long before I knew that both my former husband and I would eventually remarry and find happiness. Looking back, it's one of those moments that reminds me life often unfolds in ways we could never have predicted.
For me, You Think You Know is a reminder that life rarely follows the script we've written in our minds. Sometimes the ending we fear becomes the beginning of a story we never could have imagined.
Second Chances
When I wrote Second Chances, I found myself thinking about how often we let our past define who we are. We all have moments we'd like to do over, dreams that didn't work out the way we planned, and seasons that left us wondering what might have been.
As I reflected on my own life, I realized that every ending has the potential to become a new beginning. The mistakes we make, the disappointments we face, and even the heartbreaks we endure all become part of the person we're still becoming. They don't have to be the final chapter.
This song is about recognizing that life has a remarkable way of giving us opportunities we never expected. Sometimes they're obvious, and sometimes we don't recognize them until much later. What matters is having the courage to let go of what was, embrace what is, and step forward into what could be.
Looking back, I've learned that second chances aren't really about starting over. They're about taking everything we've learned along the way and using it to create something even better than we imagined the first time.
A New Way of Life
When I wrote A New Way of Life, I was standing at a crossroads. I had the opportunity to accept a new job that would take me 600 miles away from everything I had ever known. I hadn't made my decision yet, and I found myself wondering what life would look like if I had the courage to take that leap.
Leaving behind familiar places, family, and friends wasn't an easy thought. It meant stepping into the unknown without any guarantees. But as I looked around at the beauty of each new day, I realized that life is always moving forward. Every sunrise brings another opportunity to grow, to change, and to discover something new about ourselves.
This song became my reminder that sometimes we have to trust the path before we can see where it leads. We can't spend our lives waiting for certainty. At some point, we have to open the door, step outside, and let the journey begin.
Looking back now, I can see that the biggest decision wasn't whether to move. It was whether I was willing to embrace a new way of life.
I Live
I Live is one of the most personal songs I've ever written because it came from asking some of life's biggest questions. Why are we here? Who am I? What is my purpose? Where does God fit into all of this?
As I thought about those questions, I found myself looking at the world around me. Birds don't question why they fly. Fish don't wonder why they swim. They simply live the life they were created to live. It made me realize how often we complicate something that may actually be very simple.
For me, the answer wasn't found in having every question resolved. It was in recognizing that life itself is the miracle. The fact that I can dream, love, wonder, hope, and have faith is already an incredible gift. I may never know all the answers this side of heaven, but I know that God is with me through every joy, every tear, and every unanswered question.
At the end of the day, I realized the greatest gift God has given me is beautifully simple: I live. And sometimes, that's all we really need.
He Walks Beside Me
When I wrote He Walks Beside Me, I found myself reflecting on the quiet comfort of never truly walking through life alone. There are seasons when our hearts are broken, our dreams feel scattered, and the road ahead seems longer than we ever imagined. Yet somehow, we keep finding the strength to take another step.
As I wrote the lyrics, I realized this song could be heard in more than one way. Each person brings their own experiences to it, and I've come to appreciate that. Some hear it as a song about faith. Others hear it as the enduring presence of someone they've loved and lost. I don't think either interpretation is wrong.
For me, the song is about the comfort that comes from knowing love doesn't simply disappear. Whether that love comes from God, from someone who shaped our lives, or from memories that continue to guide us, there is a peace in believing we are never truly walking alone. Sometimes the greatest comfort isn't having all the answers—it's simply feeling that quiet presence beside us as we continue down the road.
Summer Days
When I wrote Summer Days, I found myself thinking about the childhood that shaped me and the simple moments that have stayed with me throughout my life. The smell of flowers in my mother's garden, long conversations beneath the clouds, my father's quiet encouragement, friends, open fields, and endless summer afternoons are memories I still carry with me today.
As I reflected on those years, I realized it wasn't the big events that left the deepest impression. It was the ordinary moments that often go unnoticed while we're living them. Looking back, those simple experiences became the foundation of who I am and the values I still hold close.
I originally recorded this song in a professional studio in the early 2000s. Years later, I decided to revisit it and reimagine it using AI, giving it a fresh musical style while preserving the heart of the song. Hearing it again reminded me that while music can evolve, the memories and emotions that inspired it remain timeless.
Looking at my life today, I realize those memories never really left me. They shaped the choices I've made and the life I've built. My love for gardening, my homestead, the animals, and the quiet rhythm of country life all trace back to those childhood summers. In many ways, I'm still living the life that first captured my heart all those years ago.
One Made From Two
When I wrote One Made from Two, it was a wedding gift for a family member. I wanted to give them something more personal than anything I could have bought—a song that told the story of how their lives came together and celebrated the beginning of their new journey.
Many of the lyrics were inspired by their own story. One of my favorite memories was the day he was working on her house and was stung by a bee. He asked her for help, and that unexpected moment became part of their story together. That's why I couldn't resist writing, "Who knew the love bug was a bee?" Sometimes real life gives us lyrics better than anything we could invent.
I originally recorded this song as a traditional love ballad and gave it to them as their wedding present. Years later, I decided to revisit it and completely reinvent it as a rock anthem. While the music has a very different energy, the story at its heart remains exactly the same.
Looking back, I think this song is really about how life's ordinary moments often become the memories we treasure most. We never know which conversation, chance meeting, or even an unexpected bee sting might become the beginning of a story that lasts a lifetime.
Where Love Abounds
When I wrote Where Love Abounds, I found myself reflecting on the path that had brought me to that moment in my life. Looking back, I realized how every twist, every challenge, and every unexpected turn had led me somewhere I never imagined I'd be.
Years earlier, I had moved from Pennsylvania to North Carolina, never knowing how much that decision would change my life. Along the way, I found Bryan, and together we built a life rooted in faith, love, and the simple joys that mean the most to us.
This song grew out of that season of reflection. Sometimes we spend so much time looking ahead that we don't realize how far we've come. Writing these lyrics reminded me to pause, look around, and simply be grateful for the life we had built together.
Where Love Abounds is a love song, but it's also a reminder that sometimes the places we search for in life aren't found overnight. They're built one day at a time, until one day you look around and realize you're already there.
Christmas Wishes
"Christmas Wishes" was the very first song I ever wrote. At the time, my then-spouse and I were exploring adoption, and as we learned more about the process, I found myself thinking constantly about the children who were still waiting for a family to call their own. While so many of us experience Christmas surrounded by love and familiar traditions, I couldn't help but wonder what the season must feel like for those who were still hoping for a place to belong.
Those thoughts eventually became this song. I didn't set out to write my first song that day—I simply wrote what was on my heart. Looking back, I realize this was the beginning of a passion I never knew I had.
Although the song was inspired by children waiting for forever families, its message reaches beyond adoption. At its heart, it's about hope, belonging, and the life-changing impact of love. Christmas reminds us that the greatest gifts are rarely the ones we can wrap. Sometimes they're found in compassion, in opening our hearts to others, and in making someone feel seen, wanted, and loved.
My hope is that "Christmas Wishes" encourages each of us to look beyond our own celebrations and remember those who may be carrying quiet hopes of their own. If it inspires even one person to extend kindness, show compassion, or consider changing a child's life through foster care or adoption, then this first song has accomplished far more than I ever imagined.
