I'm the product of older parents, which comes with its perks (IHOP age 55+ discount, anyone?), one of which is the fact that Fleetwood Mac (the entirety of the Rumours album is ingrained into my memory), James Taylor, The Rolling Stones, and the Eagles were played throughout our home from the moment I entered this world. My family's life revolves around concerts (remember those?), pajama dance parties on Saturday mornings, and creating the perfect soundtrack to weekday dinners. Now, this doesn't make my music taste greater than anyone else's, I'm just pointing out that music has been an integral part of my childhood and entry into adulthood.

I created a playlist on New Year's Eve (the worst holiday ever, but that's another story) in which I would add a new song every day until the next NYE to reflect on the past year. So far (July 30, 2020) I have accumulated 212 songs, or 12 hours and 54 minutes worth of music memories.

2019 Sydney did not know that this playlist would be needed so badly by 2020 Sydney. I just thought this would be a fun little aural diary for the spring semester of my freshman year in college and into my last summer living in my parents' home. I had no idea that COVID-19 would send me home two months earlier than anticipated, leaving me uninspired and searching for small moments of creativity that did not exist in my childhood bedroom. I needed this playlist to, in a way, practice self-love. I needed to set time aside to reflect on my day and give gratitude for the peace that music gives me.

Through my aunt's passing, I relied on music in a different way. Her favorite songs would flood my memory with visions of her and wrap me in an embrace that only she could create. I was, and still am, learning to heal by living through her music taste. I felt connected to her in a way I hadn't before. Yes, I know that sounds horrifically cliché but I can say with confidence that it helped. I was feeling every emotion I needed to feel. I cried with the sad songs, I smiled with the happy-go-lucky hits and screamed along to every glorious lyric of "Move Along" by The All-American Rejects.

I think it's great to have music woven into our day-to-day lives. It creates new memories and lets us relish in excitement (ace a test? "All I Do Is Win" by DJ Khaled) or get a good cry out when you need to (miss your family back home? "Rivers and Roads" by The Head and the Heart). While it may not be the same for everyone, I know making playlists and searching for music video moments (you know what I mean) has made me romanticize my life in a way I have never practiced before. So while it's just the Spotify application on my phone (do not come for me, Apple Music users), I have learned to love and cherish the company of myself in a time that seemed destined to prove me wrong.