Nothing Stops Another Day
This afternoon I had a spiritual experience. With music. Duh. I think the power of music is underrated. It can automatically shift a mood. For me, I feel music deep in my chest and gut. It moves me in a way very few things do. I’m going to get into this in another post because I feel it deserves its own.
But anyways, my spiritual experience. I put on my musical theater playlist…most of the close people in my life know musical theater was my first love and remains a great joy in my life. However, I haven’t listened to this playlist in a long time. It’s mostly been punk rock and pop punk as of late. This was made evident by my Spotify Wrapped. I was needing some music that centered me more than amped me up; I have enough angst as it is.
The first two songs that played were “The Secret to Happiness (Reprise)” from Daddy Long Legs and “Nothing Stops Another Day” from Ghost – The Musical. I’m sure you can guess the mood and energy of both songs by the titles.
I have had a really hard year. Coming to terms with a lot. Rewiring my brain. Changing up my path that used to seem so clear. But as 2022 nears its end, I am feeling a sense of calm. I survived another year. I finally feel that I am on a path to really feeling more joy and less angst. So, the first song to play hit me. But it uplifted me. It lightened my mood. It made me smile. I am discovering and practicing the secrets to happiness.
The next song hit deep. Clearly, you can see by the title that it’s a pretty deep song. As I was singing, the lyrics made me involuntarily start crying. Not tearing up. Full on crying. Now I know that I can sing through tears, which is pretty rad, but that’s besides the point.
Life goes on. There’s something so beautiful and terrifying about that sentiment. Everyone deals with some type of hardship or trauma throughout their lives: the loss of a job, a big move, a global pandemic. Trauma rewires your brain and getting to a new normal can be really painful and difficult. This song allowed a release that I’ve been needing.
She talks of seeing a sunrise from a window. She misses the sunrise every day. The shadows were too tall. She’s seeing it, finally, one day. Shadows of difficult times, whether you allow yourself to admit that’s what it was, can be looming; terrifying because sometimes it feels as though they will never go away.
After the first four lines, the rest of the song took me to a place of calm and immense emotion at the same time. As this year comes to a close, I am ready to experience life to the fullest. The feeling of excitement, readiness and hope leads me into 2023. I know that doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be days of anxiety, frustration and stress—that’s just part of life—but I know that those days won’t break me. And the notion that nothing can stop the next day from coming is freeing in the sense that every bad day has to end and a hopeful new day will begin.
Life doesn’t feel as daunting. Life feels hopeful. Life feels like life. I notice people. I feel emotions. I accept them for what they are. I feel mist on my face and the chill of winter. I hear the overwhelming sounds of the city. I am out of autopilot. I am out of my daze. I see the sunrise.
