I went to my first concert that I got to choose for myself when I was in the fourth grade. My mom, best friend, and her mom piled into the car with me and drove to see Hilary Duff's Most Wanted Tour. What's hit me most about the Ariana Grande concert bombing is that it could have been me. Like those girls and boys, I was at a concert to relax and have fun. I was there to celebrate getting straight A's that year and to have fun with my best friend. Like those girls and boys, that night, I didn't have a care in the world.

The girls and boys at the Ariana Grande concert have now had the experiences of a concert ruined for them forever. They will never be able to lose themselves in the beat of the bass without a single worry. They will never be able to gather with other people in a large space and lose all their cares in the world. Someone has taken that privilege away from these carefree young people. Some have even lost their lives simply for attending a concert to lose their worries.

I have seen over 80 different acts in my life from genres across the board. Concerts have always been a huge part of my life. I have gathered with friends, family, strangers, and the people that inspire me to celebrate music and what it does for people. Music has saved me, inspired me, brought me new friends, brought me closer to old friends, comforted me, and amplified my happiness many times.

The bottom line is someone took away that safety that people feel in the presence of music. Worse, they took it away from vulnerable young people that need music now, more than ever. In the midst of the chaos that surrounds our worlds today, music has always been a safe haven. And someone had the nerve to take that away from these young people.

What do we do from here? How do we move on? We owe it to them to continue living our lives the way we did before. We will continue to gather with our friends and family to listen to the music that has brought us through our darkest times, and brightened the sun in our brightest. We will continue to gather to celebrate life and music and love and light.

Yes, that could have been me at the Ariana Grande concert. But it wasn't. And for those people, I will continue to go to concerts. We will show the people that carried out this act of senseless violence that we will not back down. We will show the resilience of the human spirit. And we will support you.