As I was walking home from work today, listening to a random Google radio station, one of the songs from Carol King’s album, Tapestry, came through the rotation and I was immediately transported back in time about twenty-five years to one of many long roadtrips my mom and I used to make. It was just the two of us on a fifteen hour journey to my grandparents’ house with nothing to do but sing along to my mom’s favorite albums and eat road snacks.
The vision of the two of us singing along to Carol King at the top of our lungs was so powerful that I swear I could see the inside of our old car and feel the road moving under it. I could see the long evening shadows extending from the Montana Rockies as we drew closer and I could feel my anticipation – a child’s excitement – building as every mile brought us closer to home. I could see my mother smiling and I was happy.
And just as quickly as the memory overwhelmed me, it dissipated. That road is a million miles away, but for 2 minutes and 29 seconds, I relived a very happy memory. It’s crazy how music can do that.
