The laughter of children running through the grass while chasing each other and evanescent bubbles created an idyllic backdrop as the 2013 Lemon Bee Music Festival resonated through Olde Town Conyers on June 1. In its seventh year now it has become a mainstay and an event that I would not miss for the world.

I’m openly partial to Lemon Bee founder, Matt Wilcox, and he knows this as I hurry across the pavilion to hug his neck and snap photos as he busily attends to performance day details. His vision of a local music festival showcasing the area’s best musicians is once again coming to life on this warm and breezy June afternoon. As I look around for familiar faces and spot them one after the other, I smile to myself at the community that has come together to support Matt and the arts.

I find my friend, Dave Stepp, and we huddle together on one of the cozy couches placed around the pavilion as we wait for the next band to begin. We reminisce about the last time we saw each other, The Olde Town St. Patrick’s Day celebration, and it’s another reminder of how much we love this little town and the way music seems to always bring us back here. I spy Branden Savage practicing the art of poi and I’m mesmerized at the grace and skill he displays. I come out of my trance to take his photo and he never loses his concentration. Later that night the fire will swing around him to the thrill of the crowd. The festival draws many talents and it is an exercise in pure exhilaration.

As I wander through the arts and crafts lining the grassy field I hear, “Hey Mom” from several “kids” who really aren’t my kids but they claim me as I do them. This from spending years watching them grow up alongside my sons. They’ve spent their youth as more than mere visitors in my house and I’ve watched them become accomplished musicians, artists and outstanding young adults. It fills me with a warmth inside that I can be here today, amongst these people, and share in all that music can bring to our lives.

When it’s time for sustenance, we file into The Celtic Tavern and order grilled chicken salads and ice cold drinks. I am eagerly anticipating the arrival of my precocious granddaughter, Veda, and when she comes through the door and sees me there, her smile sends my heart racing with delight. She is in my arms and hugging me breathless and I can’t wait to take her outside and show her the hula hoops. She hurries toward the children’s area and is making the biggest bubbles I’ve ever seen, surrounded by other children anxiously awaiting their turn to dip their wands into the sticky bowls of soapy water. I can only hold her attention briefly with the hula hoops as she has spotted the bean bag games and is off in a flash to learn more.

All the while the musicians and bands play one after the other to the delight of the crowd. Gyzmo is waiting his turn to play while his wife, Lynne Maxwell, wanders the festival taking photographs. She is a professional photographer and I am thrilled to see her with her camera. Her photos capture more than the image, they capture the spirit. She’s focused on a man with a snake around his neck and once again what she captures does not disappoint. Not everyone was as enthralled with the snake man, including Veda, but his boa didn’t seem to mind the crowds one bit. He happily allowed me to stroke his scales as did the more venturous folks waiting behind me to do the same.

I finally had to make my way back to The Celtic to prepare for a night of karaoke inside the tavern. I know Matt must be feeling very satisfied with another successful festival under his belt. He won’t get to rest for long as this music tradition is now firmly planted in the hearts of all those who toil endlessly to bring it to life each year. Thank you to the artists who lined the grass, the musicians who brought their talents to the stage, those who trekked across town with couches precariously perched on their trucks and thank you, Matt. Your Lemon Bee dream buzzes on!