Music and Traditions
October 4th. 2025
Music has been a huge part of my life and major milestones. When I was very young, my parents separated leading me to have two completely different interactions with music depending on who I was living with. In this blog I will discuss two transitions and the role music had in them with both sides of my family.
I. Big Girls Don’t Cry- Fergie
When my biological mom would pick me up for her weekends with me, she would always blast the radio with the windows rolled down. She usually brought me a Coke in a can to drink on the ride to her house. I remember feeling like the coolest kid ever with my Coke in the cupholder of my car seat. She drove a beat up red Honda she called “The Hoopty” and this song was always playing. I remember listening to the words and thinking “big girls should be allowed to cry” so I always thought it was a silly song and I felt bad for my mom whenever it came on. I didn’t want her to feel like she couldn’t cry. But she sure did sing her heart out so I figured she just liked the tune.
When I hear this song it makes me think of the little traditions I had with my biological mom. We were always limited with time so it was hard for us to do much together, but she never failed to pick me up and sing the songs on the radio with me.
II. She’s Always a Woman to Me- Billy Joel
My adopted mom was a piano performance major so we always had pianos and sheet music readily available. When my sister and I were little, we liked to pretend to play the piano. We would pull out my mom’s songs and put them up and sing them even though we had no idea how the songs were supposed to sound and we didn’t know how to play the piano. I remember finding this song and barely being able to read the lyrics because I was so little. My sister helped me figure out what the lyrics were and we thought this was the funniest song ever. This became our favorite song to sing together. My mom would hear us but she thought it was a song we made up because we weren’t singing the right tune, pitch, or words, and she finally figured out what we were singing when we asked her to play it for us. I remember all three of us sitting on the piano bench together watching my moms fingers float up and down the piano (the fluidity on pianists movements still fascinates me today) and listening to her sing the song completely different from anything we ever imagined. In that moment I realized how talented my mom was and felt bad because she never played the piano anymore. After that day, my sister and I would find songs for her and we would all sit and listen to her play while singing.
To me, this song symbolizes the little routines I had with my family and the ways we got to bond through music.
Hi Anna! I absolutely love Big Girls Don't Cry! When I was little, my siblings used to sing me that song when I cried to try and make me stop crying. Most times it would make me mad but sometimes it would really help me calm down. I really like your personal connections to these songs it shows into your personal life and how your family dynamics worked as you grew up!
ReplyDeleteHey there, Anna! I actually haven't heard either of the songs you put here until today. Although, I think it's very nice the relationship you hold with your family and how music kind of brings it together in some way. My sister and I often listen to music together as well and laugh about lyrics all the time. Our favorite song to laugh about is called "50 Ways to Say Goodbye" by Train. I will agree with you though on the fact that big girls shouldn't feel like they can't cry. Having emotions is part of being human and I think people forget that sometimes.
ReplyDeleteIt’s sweet how music connects you to both your moms and brings back those special memories. I can relate to the part about car rides my family also loves singing along to songs on road trips. The difference is that we didn’t really play instruments together like you did, so I thought it was really cool how the piano is part of your family’s traditions. It’s awesome how music can bring people together in different ways
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Anna! I enjoyed reading your interview. Those are two great song choices. You seem to have a great, close relationship with your family. I love that! You also described your connections with each song really well!
ReplyDelete