Choosing one favorite on an album that redefined pop music and set Taylor Swift apart as one of the greatest musicians of our time is no easy task. "Style" is certainly a contender, with an intro that makes me feel like I am ascending into the heavens; it reminds me of the on-again off-again person that will probably crash my wedding. "How You Get the Girl" is a brilliant tutorial that I wish the men in my life would follow. "I Know Places" has always been a favorite. I am obsessed with the detail of the recording click at the beginning and end of the song, the inability to evade the paparazzi even to keep love sacred. Hearing Taylor's very own heartbeat for the first time again when she released "Wildest Dreams (Taylor's Version)" was truly a life-changing experience, and I await the full rerelease with great anticipation. It would be criminal not to mention "Clean", a song that genuinely means more to me than words. In times of distress, doubt, and self-hate, that is the song I play. It is a song for when I need a reminder that my past mistakes, no matter how horrible, do not define me. I could undoubtedly write sixteen essays, one for each track, explaining why I love every single song, but ultimately, "You Are In Love" comes out supreme as my all-time number-one favorite. I acknowledge myself to be a hopeless romantic (with an emphasis on the hopeless). I am a daydreamer, a romance novel reader, and a lover of love songs. Despite this, my love life is quite nonexistent. This is perhaps partially due to my exceedingly high standards that I refuse to lower, standards that were influenced by "You Are In Love". This is a song that makes me feel like I have a perfect understanding of romantic love without having it; it is a song that makes me long to one day experience this feeling for myself. "He keeps his word, and for once you let go of your fears and your ghosts." There is an incredible amount of trust in this statement. I long to find a person I am comfortable enough around to forget my worries. I imagine ghosts to be past mistakes, some being unforgivable, but this person accepts and loves you regardless; you can forget your ghosts. "One night he wakes strange look on his face pauses then says, 'You're my best friend.'" This person is more than just a romantic partner. They are your closest friend. You tell them your secrets, you laugh together, you cry together, you trust them more than anyone, and you love them for it. "You two are dancing in a snow globe round and round, and he keeps a picture of you in his office downtown, and you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars, and why I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words." Dancing round and round in a never-ending circle, the picture of you is a simple act, but touching nonetheless. The feeling with this person, in this very moment, caused destruction and insanity. It also caused Taylor Swift to build her incredible songwriting career. "You can hear it in the silence. You can feel it on the way home. You can see it with the lights out." Taylor Swift, thank you for reminding me not to settle, for showing me what it feels like to be in love, for daring to write an album no one else believed would be successful, and for proving the haters wrong.

Handwritten letters. Writing them, receiving them, seeing my name on an envelope in the mailbox. Ice cold glasses of whole milk, or better yet, a large milkshake no one believes I can finish. Traveling. Meeting new people and exploring new places. Interactions with strangers who I'll never see again, nor will I ever forget. Listening to Taylor Swift music. Screaming my favorite songs out the rolled-down car window. Rewatching my favorite movies for the hundredth time, wishing I didn't remember how they end. Enjoying a plate of homemade mac 'n cheese made by my grandma. Playing cards with her and losing. Hot chocolate with a scoop of whipped cream and marshmallows on top. New cardigans that fit just a little too big. The smell of a new book or a batch of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. What may appear as an obscure list of random things to some people is a description of the moments, the memories, the emotions that I live for. They're the things that get me out of bed in the morning. Life isn't about extreme, huge acts that rarely occur. It's about the little things that keep us going when the going gets tough. The little things that make our day just a little bit brighter. The simple pleasures that can be the difference between an ordinary day and a great one.

"259 days until Fulton '22." These are the words written on the whiteboard of my school locker in bright purple Expo marker. When walking past my locker, classmates often ask me what the words mean or why they are there. Fulton, also known as Summer Leadership Workshop, is the Missouri Association of Student Councils' flagship event: a week-long summer camp held in June each year, which I had the opportunity to attend in 2019. I've been to countless summer camps, overnight trips, and workshops over the years, but none have impacted me quite like Fulton. When I first walked through the gates of the William Woods campus, a group of extremely loud individuals with absurd hats were jumping and screaming in my face. I was assigned to join a group of eighteen complete strangers who grew to become some of my closest friends by the week's end. Each day at Fulton, I found new ways to step out of my comfort zone, new ways to live with GUSTO, and new ways to make my voice and opinions heard. The thing that made this experience so impactful wasn't the leadership skills I gained, certainly not the less than satisfactory food (though they did have ice cream for three meals a day, so who am I to complain), or even the countless ideas I brought home and implemented in my own school. It was the newfound family I'd gotten to know, the memories I'd never forget, and the person I had become when I was with those people. I'll continue to count down the days until I can return to the place that means the most to me, reliving the experience that shaped the person I am today.