You and I

There's just something about music. I can't really describe it, never have been able to, but there's just something about it that gets me. I think anyone would agree that I have a sick amount of music. And I love finding new artists, and am constantly doing so. We had a chapter about pain last week in my foundations class which I found interesting/amusing. One thing it talked about was distractions. Some people use tv, friends, books, music, etc. I remember one night, when I was going through the whole initial health thing, my parents took me to the Riley hospital ER in the middle of the night. I was in so much pain and they didn't know what to do. That's where I kind of started the whole neurologist thing I think. Anyway. So we're sitting in the ER for forever and finally went back to a room. I think it was like 3am by the time we saw anyone. I remember the whole time I was reading Eragon which had just recently came out. When the doc came in the room and talked to us, my parents gave him the whole lowdown and everything. He looked at me and said well she can't be in that much pain if she's sitting there reading. I have a hunch that my mom wanted to punch him. (For anyone considering going into health care, or quite frankly, anyone considering communicating with anyone at all, pain is what the patient/person says it is. The fifth vital sign. You have no place to tell a person that they are not in pain when they say that they are. Trust someone who has been in that position many times, it can be one of the most frustrating, disheartening things to be told something like that.) Instead, she just looked at him and said, I think it's her escape. It's someplace that she can go to just get away from it all. Now I don't remember much from that time in my life, but this memory stands out and probably always will. It was the first time that I actually thought that my mom got me, knew who I was. To bring us back around to the original topic, I think music is like that for me too. There is hardly a moment in my day when I am not listening to some sort of music. I am right now. My sister makes fun of me because in the mornings I carry around my ipod playing music through its speakers. There's just something about the way it can make you feel. There's the words, the rhythm, the notes, everything. But the best is when you combine it all, combine it to make something beautiful. And how it affects your mood. If I'm driving and listening to slower, calmer songs, I drive that way. If the song changes to a heavy, faster beat, I speed up without realizing it. To me that's just incredible. I'm not sure what brought about this writing, but I was listening to music a little earlier this evening, and a song came on that brought this huge smile to my face. No idea why, no explainable reason for the sudden mood change (not that I was in a bad mood before, just not a goofy grinning from ear to ear mood). But there it is. It happens. So thank you music makers, for this gift. And thanks to all of you who contribute to the soundtrack of my life. (Cheesy, I know. Cut me some slack, I'm feeling sentimental :)