Why do we do it?

Good morning!

So I'm between Rick Springfield concerts at the moment...went to one Wednesday and I have one tomorrow, so I'm in a hovering state of "WHOO HOO!" right now.

My mother doesn't understand why I go to Rick concerts every year.  She praises my husband for his patience with me and my "weird" activity.  Thing is, I think she's the one who's "weird" because having an admiration, a crush, on a celebrity is something that is not just the topic of my first novel Dream in Color but is something I believe every human holds on to for life.

Why.  Why do we do it?  Why do we hold an affection for a musician we have never met and do not know on a personal level?  Why do we fork over piles of money for t-shirts, Cd's, concert tickets,  memorabilia?

Why do we stand in line in the scant hope we can have a moment with the musician we love?

It might be a complex question for some people, but for me it's very easy.  Let me see if I can paint a picture for you.

When I'm at a concert, I'm not a mom, I'm not an employee, and I'm not a wife.  The years and the pounds and the aches and pains fade away as the curtain rises and the first notes of the music stream from the stage right into my heart.  In that moment, in that span of time I'm sixteen again.  I work so I can buy things I like, not to pay the light bill.  I am thin and young and free.  I can dance and there's no one to be embarrassed.  I can sing at the top of my lungs and there's no one there to tell me to be quiet.  Every lyric of every song brings to mind a picture from my life, good and bad, and in the middle of a swirling mass of music and screaming fans, I can celebrate where I've been, where I am, and where I'm going.

It's a rare thing, I think, for a deep connection like this to happen.  We all have that one musician that makes us feel that way, but I believe we all only have one, maybe two at best.  This isn't about just enjoying the music.  That I could do very little effort and cost in the privacy of my own home.  But we go to the concerts because we need to see the musician's connection to the song.  We need to know that the poetry that that musician wrote still means something to him/her, and that in the performance of that song, we bridge the gap between musician and fan.

Taking this one step further, I believe it's why many of us write.  I don't think there's an author out there who isn't inspired by some kind of music.  You all know I create soundtracks for every book I write.  We write stories, in part, because something in a song nags at us until we do.  Maybe a song paints  very clear picture for us.  For me, I can't listen to anything by Matchbox 20 without thinking about the hero of  my upcoming "Lies in Chance" because something in Rob Thomas' voice paints such a clear picture of my Bryan that even if I'm in the grocery store...if "3 AM" comes over the muzak, I have to stop what I'm doing and think about that character.

So my friends, I write because I'm inspired to by the music I love.  And I go to Rick Springfield concerts because that's the music that inspires me the most.  And it's the music that transforms me into a better version of me.  Oh, and he's super hot to watch when he's performing live!  (That doesn't hurt, right?)

And now...go forth and WRITE!