100 Ways

21. Nine in the Afternoon

I don't know about you guys, but I am a huge fan of Panic at the Disco.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those crazy obsessed fans who go on and on about how Brendon is hot and Google their biographies like crazy. I am a decent fan who stands her distance and sits down to listen very powerful music that makes me feel alive.

I knew Nine in the Afternoon was a very special song within the first ten seconds of listening to it. I knew it would make it big. I knew it would show the world that the members of Panic at the Disco were happy and loving life. I knew it would make me happy whenever I listened to it. It's a song that speaks to me. Have you ever had one of those? It's a song that makes me stop what I'm doing so I can fully appreciate. The way the notes are formed and the beautiful lyrics make the song unique. It's a song you'll never forget. It's the song that is always with you. It's a song that, even though you're not fully thinking about it, is always in your head. The words scream at your soul and give you a reason to breathe. Nine in the Afternoon is that song for me.

I admit it: I'm not the biggest Panic at the Disco fan,
In fact, my favorite band ever is Evanescence. And if I had to pick one song that will always be my favorite, it would be The Last Song I'm Wasting on You by Evanescence.
It will always be like that for me. However, Nine in the Afternoon speaks to me in so many ways.

The music is so carefree. It's happy. Have you listened to it? The introduction with the piano automatically gives the listener a clue how upbeat and silly it is. His voice is so powerful. Even though it's kind of high-pitched and up there, it most definitely suits the band. It makes them, them. It makes them unique and that is what everyone loves about it. It's the last 56 seconds that get. Seriously. The way everyone is singing in unison and clapping. And when the violin and trumpets are going at the end and people are cheering and applauding. The song is the epitome of happiness.

And the music video? Oh my gosh, what I would give if I could have been there doing the shooting of the Nine in the Afternoon video. They looked so happy, did they not? The entire time, they were smiling. Did you notice? They were truly having fun just being around each other and doing what they do best. Playing music. Saving lives.

This song makes happier than ever. I am not even joking. The joy they had while recording the song floats from my headphones and into my soul. I am at a very difficult point of my life right now. I have not truly smiled in almost three weeks. And then I clicked on Nine in the Afternoon. And I smiled. Smiled like I used to. I used to smile all the time; every second of every hour of every day. For absolutely no reason. Panic at the Disco gave me my reason for smiling again.

You want to know something? You, the readers, make me happy. Unbelievably happy. Especially the people who gave me the latest comments. Those are the people who inspired this chapter. I was listening to Nine in the Afternoon while reading those comments. A song that gives me hope plus comments that make me realize I'm actually doing something right with me life give me reason to breathe.

"I owe you so much for having this story up. I've re-read it all so many times I almost know it by heart. I don't know what I'd do without it....Wow, it really is amazing how much reading this has - without sounding too cliché - changed my life.

Do you have any idea how happy that makes me? That comment, I swear to God, made my month. Honest. I have been crying non-stop for the past month. My life has been horrible. And that comment and this song made me realize I need to snap out of it and live my life. I need to be happy. I will be happy. I will smile.

It's okay to be sad. It happens. It's life. But we have to realize that we cannot let those small things let us down. Sure, some are really important and they hurt beyond belief. But humanity must focus on the things that makes us smile, make us laugh - no matter how small they are.

All I wish I could do is....meet the band members of Panic at the Disco and thank them will that I have. Thank them for saving my life. I have no idea what would happen if I didn't buy that first CD, that inspired me to buy the next, that made me listen to the song that prevented me from taking my life. They literally saved my life and I love them with all my soul.

And I love you too. With all that I got.

I smile.
Because I could, I can, so I do.
=]