Thursday, July 3, 2008

dance to the music

Music moves me. That should be a surprise to nobody. Music moves my mind, my body, my soul. It touches my heart.

Music is one of those things in life that can do anything. It's undeniable, almost. You can't live without music. It's also universal. It's one of those questions you ask a stranger you're getting to know ("what music do you like?"). Why? Because it's telling of one's personality, of who someone really and truly is.

I am a huge fan of finding ways to hold on to memories. Pictures are really important to me. My high school group of friends never really liked taking pictures, and the result is that whenever I miss them, I'm stuck looking at the same five or six pictures. That's why, for the people who know me now, I try to have my camera on me at all times, and almost always insist on snapping a few photos. I don't want to lose the memories, because I know I will. We all will. It's impossible to remember every moment of every day, as much as we'd all love to.

Linking music with memories is even more important to me now. Songs trigger one memory, and that's all it takes until I'm lost in a daydream about the past. I just heard On The Radio by Donna Summer and was immediately back in my dance recital from 2005. We did a montage of Donna Summer songs; it was the finale for that year, the last performance of my full-time dance career. I remember switching from pointe shoes to lyrical boots in between songs, chaos in the wings, the moment when it ended. And then when the six seniors went up and bowed, and they screamed for us louder than the rest.. I'll never lose that moment.

Then another memory pops up: rehearsals. Twenty people in our one-room studio. Five of us had just returned from a dinner break to Subworks with our tap teacher. I miss dinner breaks to fast food restaurants. We brought back a box of Munchkins for everyone, because it was our last practice before the official dress rehearsal. It was our last practice ever.

I could go on, but I'll stop myself. This happens with any song that's tied to a memory. It's amazing, though, because you never forget songs. Whenever you hear it, you think back to that moment, good or bad.

What are some songs that never fail to bring up memories for you? I know you've got one.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sometimes the strangest things trigger memories. Usually music or food, or seeing a place we used to frequent. My friends aren't big on taking pictures either and it's become a joke that I'm always making them be in photos but I would hate to wake up and realize I don't have any photographs of our time together.

Anonymous said...

oh the 2005 recital...good times...as soon as i read on the radio i imediatly thought of the same things...lol...for me i cant help thinking about all the good times of oh seven when i hear trouble...everything from decorating cars to our trip to PA to our kareokee stint at cornerstone!!!