Soundtrack to My Life

I love music. I love dancing to it, singing to it, allowing it to express me better than I can express myself.

I just love it.

But what I think I love most of all is when it takes me back. I was driving to work this morning, iPod on shuffle, and a song came on. Not just any song, but the song. The song that reminds me of when I first met Brian. I began to smile, and to reminisce. I thought of the exhilaration of awaiting his arrival to pick me up for a date, or our first kiss. I thought of all the times we laughed and talked for hours on end, getting to know one another, sharing our adventures and our secrets.

All in the span of three minutes and thirty-four seconds, I was that girl again. That girl with butterflies in her stomach, getting to know her soon-to-be husband, not knowing what the future would hold.

It was an unalloyed moment. Then the next song came on.

And just like that, I was transported from the moment of falling in love, to a whimsical childhood memory with my sister; my best friend.

And this is my life. I am constantly equating every situation with music; constantly singing, moving to the beat. Nearly every song I hear, or have on my iPod, carries with it a time and a place removed from the moment I am in. Some memories are pure bliss and perfect in their essence, while others are harsh and unforgiving.

But there is always a song attached. And, to me, it’s my soundtrack. The beat, tempo, tune, and lyrics all culminate in to the emotion I am feeling at any given moment. Whether I am dancing the night away with my girls, or sleepily sipping my morning coffee, everyone from Bach to the Beatles to Britney Spears has had part in my soundtrack. My taste in music is as eclectic as the memories they evoke, and the one (almost) constant seems to be the smile that these songs entreat, as I go back to another day, another time, another memory.