Music is a medicine and food to my soul

Music is a combination of rhythm, melody, harmony, and color. Music is food and medicine for my soul; it has always been my solution to depression. As a child, I grew to love music because my father is a lover of good songs. A day will not pass in my house that my dad won't listen to songs. This was the kind of environment I grew up in, although there is one major genre of music we do listen to, and that's blues. My dad has different collections of different foreign artists, which I enjoyed listening to till I grew up and which I do listen to now.

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For me, music is more than the beat or rhythm we dance to. The messages in some songs are enough to light our path, and this is what I love about my culture. Indigenous songs always carry lots of messages, which are used to correct and chastise when needed. Some serve as encouragers, while others are healers, and it is well appreciated because it has been working for years. I do wonder how people who don't like music survive; I can't go a day without listening to music. Sometimes music is my sleeping pill when I'm having difficulty getting asleep. Once I connect my phone to my MP3, lower the volume, and lay on my bed, before I know it, I'm off to dreamland.

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My collection of music has artists such as Celine Dion, R-Kelly, Bryan Adams, Michael Bolton, Whitney Houston of Blessed Memory, Kcee and Jojo, Backstreet Boys, Westlife, and Dolly Parton. I love listening to their genre of music because these are the artists I grew up listening to. I listen to other genres too, but not as much as I listen to blues. Music is part of me, and I cherish it a lot. My love for music prompted me to join the choir in my church and also become a songwriter. Most times, I do use my situation or whatever I'm going through to write a song that serves as a comfort to me in tough times.

When I met my best friend, she wasn't the music type; she always complained whenever I was playing music. She said to her, It's more or less noise pollution, and that made me smile because I have never seen music as noise. I once told her, "Do you know that music can heal?" She smiled because she didn't believe me. "Is music medicine?" she asked, and I explained to her that music had healed me before we met. "There were times I was going through tough times at a point in my life when I had no one to turn to and I was drowning in depression. Thank God for the music that came to my rescue," I explained to her.

"I see, that's why you always listen to music; well, it isn't medicine for me because I just dance to the beat," she said. I laughed and said, "Baby girl, good music is more than the beat; the messages it passes across are the magic in each song." I recommended some songs from my favorite artists, which she does listen to, and with time, her perception of music as a form of noise pollution changed totally. In one's life, there are times when one will be down and not in one's best mood, and all that will be a mood lifter is good music with a positive message for one's situation at that moment.

My friend was once in such a situation—a time you would want to be alone to reminisce on your life, things you've done in the past, and the way forward. When her mood wasn't that bright, she listened to some of the Celine Dion songs titled "A New Day Has Come" that I recommended for her, and in no time, she was out of the sad mood and back to her normal self. "I understand now that music is a medicine for broken souls; it truly heals, and I have confirmed it," she said to me one day. "I'm glad you can say that music is life; that's what I've believed since childhood, and the kind of songs we listen to have the possibility to impact our lives either positively or negatively.

This is why it is important to listen to good songs that can build positive edges around one's life. Music brings tremendous love and joy to our lives, the people around us, and the world at large. I am a music lover, and I will forever be, because music is my companion any day and anytime. Music brings immense happiness; the only thing I wish I knew how to do is dance. It would have been a good compliment to my love for music, but I guess I can't have it all.

Thanks for your time, and your comments will be appreciated.