some people remember moments from smells.
other people have memories that revolve around movies, or outfits, or foods.
i remember things through music.
this morning i turned on my ipod.
just like every morning.
i turned it to shuffle.
not like every morning.
and out came music.
glorious music.
the first song my ipod shuffled to was "the first single."
and, bam! just like that! im back in my senior year of high school.
the prom had just ended.
t-dizzle and i were at the old house.
we were watching some movie.
i had fallen asleep on his shoulder.
and when i woke up,
there was drool.
and in that moment i remember praising the heavens,
that high school ended in two weeks,
and that i would never see this kid again.
as he drove me home, "the first single" played,
and i wondered to myself why i had to drool
on this boys shoulder,
on prom night.
how embarrassing.
shuffle.
new song.
"faithfully."
t-dizzle and the drool drift away,
i land in the middle of a lawn.
im at the USANA amphitheatre.
im surrounded by christine and the boys.
were waiting for the concert to start.
my first concert everrrr.
im so excited.
to pass the time as we wait, were playing scum.
its hot outside.
i can feel the back of my neck getting sunburned.
im becoming more and more aware of my age,
most of the people there are older than me.
some are rocking 80s band t-shirts from the actual 80s.
finally the band comes out.
we all sing along to every song.
we all know every single word.
and as "faithfully" plays,
we put our 16-year old arms around each other,
and sway back and forth.
"im forever yours, faithfully..."
shuffle.
new song.
"shake it up."
im in a car,
in an arctic circle drive-thru.
theres a vikings sticker on the back window.
im with my first crush.
he orders 4 cookies.
and 2 vanilla ice creams.
he pulls over in the parking lot.
we each carefully lay one cookie down,
and then dump the vanilla ice cream on top,
and then lay the other cookie on top
he eats his sandwich and pulls out to go home.
its summer outside.
i turn up the radio and roll down the windows.
the wind is blowing through my hair,
and the ice cream drips all over my hands
as i eat the rest of my sandwich.
shuffle.
new song.
"its all coming back to me."
im in a different car.
in a church parking lot.
im with christine.
im anxious.
i just had a fight with my friend.
and now we are going to play indoor volleyball with him.
i dont want to be here.
celine dions voice softly hums through the speakers.
christine parks.
she looks at me.
she turns up the music. full blast.
and starts singing.
im annoyed.
i eventually give in and start singing too.
"there were moments of gold
and there were flashes of light
there were things wed never do again
but then theyd always seemed right"
and now were singing it louder than its ever been sung.
were pounding on the dashboard.
were screaming it!
the boys hear us.
they come out.
theyre laughing.
we scream/sing "'and if we,' dot, dot dot...."
i turn my ipod off.
im back in my apt.
back to reality.
i put on my shoes.
and i make my way up to campus,
where today ill make some new memory.
and in a few years,
when "mr pitiful" comes on my ipod,
maybe ill remember today.
