Thursday, December 21, 2006

power of song

Sometimes there are just certain memories that are made much more powerful through the stimulus that surrounds you at the moment it happens. The smell of fresh brownies in the kitchen for a birthday, the explosion of fireworks above your head during a first kiss, or the song playing on radio when driving home from a far away place.

The other night I was at the gym, happily stomping away on the elliptical for my cardio workout (and yes, I was in step with the music) when a certain song started to play on my headphones - "Let's Get Loud" by J-Lo. It instantly brought a smile to my face for the distinct memory it brought to mind.

When I was working in Rotterdam, we played a weekend match down in Luxembourg and the two teams drove down there in the school vans. It wasn't planned this way but it just happened that the Varsity piled in my van and the JV girls jumped in with their coach, Tracy. We had a successful weekend and the girls were in good spirits as we headed back to Rotterdam on the rolling highways of Belgium. And then it happened.

"Let's Get Loud" came on the radio and before I knew it, the volume was cranked and the girls were singing the song at the top of their lungs in the van. It was amazing, the energy of the girls flooded over me as the van bounced up and down the road as they jumped around singing - I was captivated by the moment. The song finished a few minutes later and the girls slowed back down to a more catatonic-like teenage state after their frenzy. I was smiling the rest of the way back to Rotterdam.

And so when the J-Lo song came on over my headphones, I was swept back to that moment and I smiled as I bounced on the elliptical myself. I was reminded of the wonderful girls I had on that team and the fun that we had playing volleyball. Cherished memory indeed.

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