10 Songs I Will Love For The Rest Of My Life

Have you heard the song lyric “funny how a melody sounds like a memory” from the song “Springsteen” by Eric Church? Even if you haven’t, I’m sure you can relate, right?! Driving down the road, enjoying the tunes on the radio, minus the squabbling in the backseat, and suddenly you are surprised by *that* song…the one you haven’t heard in forever but can still belt out every line…maybe not on-key, but hey – no one else is listening – jam away!

And instantly a flood-gate of memories opens up, maybe good, maybe not-so-good, maybe specific to a certain time and place, or maybe just a remembering of an old friend or flame. Either way, those few minutes are a break from the reality of here and now, the busyness of the day-to-day grind, and allow you to take some time to reflect on how far you have come and how many different factors have shaped you into the person you are today. And as the last chords fade away, hopefully you can continue on with your day with a little bigger smile and a little more bounce in your step.

I am such a music lover, sometimes because of the meaning of the lyrics, sometimes because of the melody of a song, and sometimes because of who I was with when I spent time listening to it. When one song wraps up all of these factors PERFECTLY, you know you have a song that you will carry with you forever.

Trying to narrow down my list to 10 was pretty difficult, but in no particular order, here are the 10 songs I will love for the rest of my life:

1.  God Bless the Broken Road – Rascal Flatts – This song perfectly describes my relationship with my husband. Although we’ve known each other since middle school and I had a crush on him since the first time I met him, we didn’t date until our college years. These lyrics just mean so much to me, “I couldn’t see how every sign pointed straight to you, That every long lost dream lead me to where you are, Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars, Pointing me on my way into your loving arms.”
2.  Lord, I Hope this Day is Good – Don Williams – Not only was Don Williams one of my mom’s favorite singers and I can picture her singing along to many of his other greatest hits, but these song lyrics are the perfect morning prayer, asking not for fortune and fame, but just to have a good day.
3.  Joyride – Roxette – This song is a favorite of mine not because of the lyrics, but because of the catchy tune, the fact that you can sing (holler) along to it without worrying about being in tune, and that whistling! I have vivid memories of cruising around town with one of my dear friends shortly after I got my license, windows down, wind whipping through my Taurus, and the two of us belting this song on repeat. Shortly after she passed away, every time I listened to this CD and it would get to this song, my volume would suddenly go up a few notches. At this time I was living away from home for a clinical rotation and would have long stretches of driving in the car by myself, which would allow my mind to wander. Oftentimes I would start to think about how much I missed Bethany, but before I let myself get too depressed, I would pop on this song and belt it out, just like the two of us used to do and it was almost as if I could hear her horribly off-key voice hollering alongside me.
4.  What Made You Say That – Shania Twain – This is another one of those songs that my friends and I used to sing along to when we were on our way out on the weekends. Most of us did not have serious boyfriends at the time, but we all had boys we were hoping to see and this song was kind of the fairy tale ending we all were hoping for, “Look up to see his reaction, And a smile slowly spread across his face, He said ‘What took you so long, That’s what I’ve been waiting on, I thought you’d take forever and a day'”
5.  Back 2 Good – Matchbox 20 – Actually this one could be the whole “Yourself or Someone Like You” album! This was our soundtrack to the summer of 2001(?). And that was a fun summer! Made some new friends. Had lots of sleepovers. Last chance to really act like kids, standing on the counters, singing along into our wooden spoons and spatulas, before heading off to college.
6.  Don’t Cry Joni – Conway Twitty and Jonie Lee – This one HAS to be on my list because this was probably the first song I ever learned all the lyrics to.
7.  Daddy’s Girl – Red Sovine – Growing up as the oldest of 7 girls, how can this *not* be on my list?!
8.  How Can I Help You to Say Goodbye – Patty Loveless – In 6th grade, some friends and I were going to sing this song in the school talent show. We practiced and practiced until we were perfect, or so we thought anyway! But then the day of the show, my family and I ended up heading out of town, I think it was for a funeral, and I wasn’t able to participate. Fast forward to the end of the school year and my family decided we were moving a few hours away from this town. As a 6th grader, I was devastated! As I exited the bathroom on the last day of school, trying to hide the tears in my eyes, my friends lined the hallway and began singing this song. There was no holding those tears back anymore!
9.  Say Hey (I Love You) – Michael Franti – This is one of those songs that you just CAN’T sit still through. I dare you to try! Such an upbeat song and positive message. If you haven’t watched the music video for it yet, you have to! It instantly puts a smile on my face every time! I was coaching volleyball when this song first became popular. I loved it so much I had to put it on our warm-up mix. I’m not so sure that was such a great idea though…every game I had to mentally remind myself to not start dancing in front of the crowd! It definitely got the team and I pumped up though!
10.  The Garden – Joey and Rory – Such a stripped down song. Simple. All about the message. I listened to Joey’s angelic voice many nights rocking my baby to sleep. It seemed to make any anxiety I was feeling about being a mother settle and reassure me that everything is going to happen according to His will and to just hold tight to my faith. Hearing her voice so strong even though she was in the midst of battling cancer gave me strength to get through any of the little trials I felt.

As you can see, this list is very diverse…just like most of us are. If you were asked to describe yourself with one word, or even 100, could you? We are all made up of the experiences that shape us, for better or worse. And although nowadays you can stream pretty much any song at any time, there is something about hearing a song on the radio that catches you off guard and reminds you of how special your life really is!

What songs make up the soundtrack to your life?