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Wednesday, June 29, 2011

soundtracks...


It's crazy how intertwined music becomes in relationships. Couples have songs that remind them of each other. We have songs that remind us of a particular moment with a person. We have breakup songs and moving on songs. I'm grateful for music that helps to tell a story.

I've always been hesitant to give a relationship "Our Song" as Taylor Swift so eloquently sings. I vividly remember a "crowd" (I use the term loosely in 12-year old standards) asking two of my friends in sixth grade what their song was and they immediately responded, "I Swear." (Although I think Rachel will adamantly deny it-- I witnessed it.) Now anytime I hear the song all I can think about are Rachel and Joey (and no not from those Friends). Adorable? Maybe if they had lasted through the weekend.

I was always afraid a relationship gone bad was going to permanently ruin a relationship. I can still hear Brian McKnight's "Anytime" and instantly think back to high school and the relationship that wouldn't end. I hear Tim McGraw's "My Best Friend" and I'm reminiscing about the high school football stud and John Mayer's "St. Patrick's Day" reminds me of a disappointing senior year of college. Lifehouse's "You and Me" takes me back to my favorite week in Knoxville. I love when a couple picks a song from the top40 countdown and then think every time they hear it on the radio... "it's a sign!" Yes it's a sign... a sign you picked one of the most popular current songs of the moment that will be played over and over again whether your relationship lasts or not. 

Not only are there songs tagged to relationships, but there are the songs that just trigger memories. I hear Jonah33's "Faith Like That" and I'm on my way to Ohio State with my boyfriend at the time. I hear anything Jamie Cullum sings and I'm being serenaded. I can't get away from any of the songs I so nicely put on a cd and labeled the playlist accordingly.

Some of the other classics are songs to help you move on from a relationship or maybe the others that just take you back and let you drown in what you lost. Kelly Clarkson's "Behind these Hazel Eyes" came out just in time to try to move on from a relationship while I could try to talk myself into having moved on with the grammatically correct "Since U Been Gone." For every "Broken" (Lifehouse) there's a "Settlin'" (Sugarland) to help counteract each other.

Lately I keep hearing "Fix You" (Coldplay) and "Jar of Hearts" (Christina Perri) and while neither song triggers any particular relationship... they might need to be stored up for a rainy day. But then again... do I really want them to be forever linked to a relationship that didn't work? I think that's why I like Christian music. The songs are linked to a God who's never leaving me.

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