Peter 4 President

So tonight I had a unique opportunity. An opportunity to visit prestigious Olympus Cove, aka THE East Side. As they say in The Cove…”Everything west of Wasatch Blvd is the West side.”

You might be asking yourself, why would Kristin against her better judgment to go over there…? Because Peter was there. Peter Brienholt of course.

More than ten years ago I went to my first Peter Brienholt concert, and since then, I have never really stopped. I’d guess I’ve been to between 30 and 50 of his shows. The usual drill is, go sit in the back (cheap seats) talk with the gals and the spouses then go to Training Table for cheese fries. Not this time though. This time was different.

My friend Belva who lives in “The Cove” (Missy’s Mom) had Peter Brienholt as a special guest for their ward enrichment night.

Anyway, this concert was different than all the others I have been to. I wasn’t with the usual crowd. I wasn’t even with Steve. See, I couldn’t get a sitter, and I always manage to get a sitter. But then at the last moment I did get a sitter. But then at the REAL last moment, my sitter had a family crisis and couldn’t sit on my kid after all.

So with no sitter, Steve took it for the team (me) and went to his mom’s empty house (they were out of town) and sat my kids and I went alone to the thing, and when I say I went alone, I mean I met Missy and Scott and Belva there.

Interestingly there were not many people there, I mean compared to the usual numbers at a normal Peter concert. Most of the crowd had blue hair. Besides Tommy (Missy’s 4 month old), I was totally the youngest person there. I guess the average age for that ward is about 65.

As you can see I got to have picture taken with Peter. Special thanks to Missy who was embarrassed to take it, but did it anyway. What a friend. Gold star on your forehead.

So the concert started. He talked a little about some church stuff. Being humble and grateful and some stuff about the Blue Book. It really set a nice feeling in the room. He was very believable (not that he had to convince me). It was all just very…honest.


Then he played his first song. It was so familiar. I have probably heard it 1000 times in the last 10 years. This time though, it reminded me of being single and about 23. When I was 23 and single I could feel the spirit anytime I wanted. It was a guiding force that helped me get through my singledom. I relied on heavily. Apparently Peter Brienholt songs helped me to get in tune with the spirit often because as soon as he sang it I was instantly transported back in time to those days.

Things are different for me now. Much better. But some things are more challenging. For instance, feeling the spirit let’s say. Not as easy as it once was. It used to be that it could sneak up on me and I’d feel it and bam I’d start weeping. Now, it could hit me on the head with a frying pan and I probably wouldn’t notice.

I blame it on the kids. I am much more distracted constantly than I ever use to be. I also teach primary. I know I am supposed to say that we feel the spirit in there. I am not saying we don’t because I have, but it doesn’t so much happen routinely.

The truth is, my life is much easier than it was back then. I am not lonely anymore and I don’t struggle as much, so sadly, I don’t rely on the spirit as much. My sweet Steve offers me comfort easily and thoroughly and I don’t ever really have to look hard for comfort anymore.

Anyway, the point is, I felt the spirit, and I didn’t intend to. I didn’t intend not to, it just caught me off guard. I didn’t expect it and it was special. I have gone to his shows, even fairly recently, and not had that kind of reaction, but I was not alone then like I was tonight. I was with friends and the thought of cheese fries danced thorough my head. I think the universe (HG) wanted me not to have a sitter so I could be alone and feel it like I used to when I was alone. While I was in that place, the spirit told me all kinds of good things that it has probably been trying to tell me for months, but I have been too busy-distracted-silly to notice or hear.

In closing, I give special thanks to Missy for having the insight to bring me to the place I needed to be, to Steve for watching the kids solo when I know you’d rather have been with me at home, and to Peter Brienholt for playing to a very small, mainly blue-haired crowd, who probably didn’t even understand or appreciate what or who they heard.

I truly believed all the things he said. It wasn’t just what he said or the songs he sang, it was his whole aura. You can’t fake that kind of honesty and humility. That’s why I say…Peter 4 President.

This is getting long, I realize that, but just one more quick thought.

This has been a very intense last couple of weeks what with the election and all the news surrounding it. Lines have been blurred and there is a lot of windy doctrine being blown around. In times like this, it’s important to have moments like these that keep you grounded and safe.

The church is true, the Book is Blue.