You know those days when it seems like it’s going to be a bad day but then turns around and something amazing comes out of it. August 26th, 2017 was one of those days for me.

I woke up to my three younger siblings whining, crying, and yelling about having to leave. I pulled myself out of my bed expecting the worst, but managed to get ready and out of the house in one piece. By the time we left I had a feeling it was going to be a bad day. On the way home my mom turned to me and said “We need to talk when we get home.” So I sat in my seat quiet as a mouse, my anxiety through the roof, thinking about all the things I’d done in the last week to get me in trouble.

   We got home and my mom pulled me aside. She said, “So since your birthday isn’t too far away I decided to give you your gift early.” At that moment it felt like a weight was lifted off my chest. She went into her filing cabinet, pulled out an envelope labeled “Brooklyn’s 15th”, and handed it to me. I slowly opened the envelope thinking of all the things it could be, money? A giftcard?...

Four pit seat tickets to a Florida Georgia Line concert. I was at a loss for words, so I just sat there looking at my mom. She later told me I had one of those wait-is-this-real looks on my face. What made me even more excited was that the fourth ticket was for me to bring my best friend.

   September 2nd, 2017. I woke up that morning, remember what day it was, and immediately popped up like a spring out of my bed. The concert wasn’t until later that night, so I had to keep all my excitement inside, only letting it come out  now and then when it became too much. Once my best friend showed up, we headed to the pavilion. The ride there was filled with us singing along to Florida Georgia Line’s “Sun Daze”, “H.O.L.Y”, and our forever favorite “Cruise”. When we got to the pavilion it much more crowded than I thought it would be, they had cars lined up for what seemed to be miles.

Once parked, we walked our way up to where you give your ticket and finally go in. This was the most exciting and nerve-racking part, it felt like when you get butterflies in your stomach. The security reminded me of the airport where you have to walk through the metal detectors, everyone’s pushing and shoving to get in line, so they can be the next one in. After I got through security I stood there and took it all in. They had so many little trailers full of different things, like food and clothing. You could smell the salty pretzels, buttery popcorn, and fresh pizza they were selling. They were playing different kinds of music over speakers all over the lot and every now and again I’d get a piece of someone’s conversation as they passed by me. There were so many people ranging from kids who looked 12 to adults well into their 40s, it was quite the crowd. I turned to my parents and friend and said “This is crazy” and they all gave me the you-haven’t-seen-anything-yet look and said, “Just wait until everyone is here.”

Because we were one of the first groups, we got to be right up against the silver metal railings surrounding the rectangular stage and catwalk that came out into the crowd. The pit itself was very dark and cold and surprisingly kind of quiet apart from the faint music playing in the distance.

After what felt like a million years of befriending a couple we didn’t know and talking to the bouncers, the regular lights finally went down, the stage lights came on, and the smoke started to seep off the stage, falling to the ground almost in slow motion. I heard the microphone make a little noise, the screen on stage turned on and a display of bright yellow and orange with Nelly’s name written across it in bold white letters appeared, the first opener of the concert. Suddenly the entire pavilion was flooded with screams and cheers from everyone in the audience, including me.

I’ve been to other concerts since that one but none of them will ever be as good as Florida Georgia Line. The atmosphere and people were so great that every time I think about it, I can feel a smile come across my face. That will forever be one of the best nights I’ve ever had. So whenever you have a feeling that it’s going to be a bad day, remind yourself that it could all turn around. Looking back on that day now, almost two years later, I’ve realized that it’s made me look at situations differently. That experience has made me more optimistic during bad times.