Tuesday, August 10, 2010

She only drinks coffee at midnight....

"Meet Virginia" comes on the radio and instantly my mind transports back to a sixteen year old me sitting on the lunch table outside the high school ministry office listening to him play guitar and sing. This holds no importance in my current life other than a fond memory of a time when he was everything and all I could do was smile. Our lives took very different paths, but I listen to the song with a smile and remember what it felt like to be sixteen without a worry in the world other than how to make moments like "Meet Virginia" last.

Music possesses the ability to impact our lives even when we are unaware of it. It embeds itself in our brains and makes itself known sometimes when we least expect it. When I was seventeen I worked at Tilly's. They played the same cds over and over and over again, so much so, that to this day when I hear certain songs, I begin to sing what would follow it on those cds.

The memory associated with a song can also put a negative spin on a song you once loved. For instance, John Mayer's "St. Patrick's Day" has been tainted by the past. "In the dark, on the phone, you tell me the names of your brothers/and your favorite colors, I'm learning you," croons Mayer in the second verse. While it is a very sweet couple of lines, it reminds me every time of someone I was once very close with. Things did not end on a positive note (let's just say we don't speak anymore), hence the negative connotations it holds for me. However, it is John Mayer and if you know me, you know it will never be completely soured. On the other hand, I will never be able to listen to John Legend again.

There is something inexplicably special about music. The way it makes you think or feel in that moment you first hear it. The way it can take you back in time no matter how long its been. The way it can draw people closer together. The way it can help you forget. There is something so serene about getting lost in a song, I will never have the words to describe it. But I will tell you one thing for sure, if there is music attached to a memory of you, it is safe to say I will remember you for all my life.

4 comments:

  1. Jme, you were the reason that I attended my number 1 favorite concert, let's not forget the year of the Nickel Creek at Anaheim HOB? Can I get an amen?

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  2. I could never forget that...ever. Do not forget we also saw The Wreckers in the same week. I love all my music memories with you. Oh, and AMEN!

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  3. Beautiful writing. You say you may not be able to have the words to describe it but you came close! That country song "The House That Built Me" makes me cry every time (oh darn, here I go) because I think about the house in Tustin.

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  4. That song gets me too, Kait. Love you girl!

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