There are some moments in my life that i’d categorize as miracles. Getting to be around Paul Dinello (At Home with Amy Sedaris, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) and Amy Sedaris feels like a gift from God Himself, who I believe celebrates good comedy. Let me share with you how this particular miracle, of being in Season 3 of At Home with Amy Sedaris, unfolded.
My 36th birthday was coming up (Nov 2019) and if you recall, I was heading to Paris to celebrate. I spoke with my mom the day before my flight and she said she’d be praying for my trip and was going to ask God for a special miracle for my birthday. I waved it off with a thank you and expressed that traveling to France was miracle enough. Fast forward to my birthday. It was an idyllic and simple day. I’d wanted to see Paris for as long as I can remember and there I was! As the evening was coming to a close and my friend Chelsey and I were heading to bed, I thought to check my email. I have no idea why. When I did, right at the top of my inbox was an email from a casting director, which read:
Hi Sarah, Hope you don't mind the cold reach out. We worked with you last season on AT HOME WITH AMY and the show creators would love to have you back this season…
BOOM! Birthday miracle. WHAT!!! I know, it still makes me shake my head. And I filmed the episode in December, which then aired during early quarantine days in NYC.
If you know me, you know i’m a Christian and that I believe in the power of prayer. Within that belief, I know not all prayers are answered when or how we want them answered. This very well didn’t have to happen in order for me to have found a miracle on my birthday. Because you know what? That entire day was full of miracles. This was just a moment when I felt encouraged to keep going in the pursuit of acting. Because let me tell you, even with my faith, I doubt that I will ever get hired again as an actor. It’s something I wrestle with, a lot. And yet, I do believe that God has given me the desire to be an actor, so until that shifts, I will keep on trying. But I don’t want you to read all of this and think that every time my mom or I pray, something huge happens. Or that I believe that just because you pray for something, it comes true. I often wish that were the case. However, I believe God knows better than to give me everything I want…because hindsight tends to reveal something I couldn’t see (or would’ve ignored) at the time. This is a bigger conversation about faith so I won’t get too deep into it. But, as we are almost a week out from my birthday again, it’s nice to look back and remember that sometimes birthday miracles happen. And other times, you get to celebrate your birthday with friends in a tiny NY apartment, or at a random BBQ restaurant in Chicago, or a surprise party at a barn, or a road trip to Cracker Barrel with friends and family. The truth of the matter is, I want to do better at cherishing as much of life as I can - the birthdays, the miracles AND the ordinary moments - they all add up to my little life, which I wouldn’t trade for anything. As always, thanks for reading :)