I really miss the thrill of being at a concert. Of standing up for hours that it makes my knees ache as if I had been running for a number of days, but not even noticing the presence of that pain. I miss adrenaline pumping through my veins like gasoline in a high-powered vehicle. Of waking up at five in the morning, staying fully awake for the nearly eight-hour drive to another state and remaining awake until about midnight the same night. (And not to mention, only sleeping about three to four hours the previous night because I’m so freaking excited.)
This summer, I went to a concert and saw two of my favorite bands playing at the same time in Houston, Texas – Avenged Sevenfold and Metallica. It was the best night of my life, and the entire day was filled with anticipation, extreme excitement and impatience for the long drive up there and the wait once we arrived at our hotel. I went with my dad because he is the one to blame for my particular taste in music; while other kids grew up with The Wiggles and Dora the Explorer, I grew up with Metallica, Guns N’ Roses and many, many others. So when my dad suggested we go see Metallica – my number one favorite band – this summer, I legitimately thought my heart had skipped a beat.
Once we got to the venue – about an hour or two before the doors opened, might I add – I thought that I was dreaming and that my heart was going to burst out of my chest from the excitement I was feeling. We stood outside, in the blazing Texas heat for about an hour before people were allowed into the gates. And I am not fond of warm weather, much less hot, trust me. But I was standing out there, happy as ever, waiting for our chance to have our tickets scanned so we could go inside. And of course, once we got up there, and our tickets were scanned, the small device the guy was using to scan them started making this repeated beeping sound that means the ticket is not valid. Not on my own, just on my dad’s. Let me tell you – I was freaking out. As soon as I heard those four beeps, the only thing I felt was the sensation that I was going to cry.
Well, after about fifteen to twenty minutes of walking around, being lead from here, to here, no, over there, we finally got inside and sat in our seats – and the anticipation continued.
Now, I’d been to two other concerts prior to this one, and never have I ever been so happy to be surrounded by thousands of other people, screaming, singing, and completely forgetting about their problems for the moment. And I absolutely hate crowds, but this was different. I was with people who enjoyed what I enjoyed, loved the music, the band, and we could all just be one, no matter who we were or what our background looks like – the Metallica family was one that night. And James Hetfield (Metallica’s lead singer) said something that I will never forget in my life. He said, “Metallica doesn’t give a shit. We don’t care what you look like, who you are, where you’re from, what skin color you are, what you do or don’t eat. We are all family here; we are all the Metallica family.” And that is the best thing I have ever heard a celebrity say to those that idolize them and also one of the many reasons that was the best day I have ever had in sixteen years.
