I am a religious person, in that I believe
that things happen at the time that they need to happen, and my evidence for
that is found in One Direction. One Direction
released their first single at the exact moment I needed someone telling me
that I am beautiful, and their first album was released in the US the weekend
of my senior prom, which I was not asked to, just as I had never been asked to
a dance before and they sang to me, “I wanna save your heart tonight, I can't be no superman,
But for you I'll be super human.”
I heard that they had a new single
for their second album just when I needed a friend, as I was struggling to find
one during my first semester of college, and that album was released after it
seemed everything had fallen apart, and again they were there for me right when
I needed it.
Midnight Memories was released just
before I left home to live across the world for a semester, and with that
album, I was able to take five friends with me to London.
Today when I woke up I did not
expect that today would be one in which I walk around campus with a smile on my
face that I cannot seem to get to go away, in fact, things have been going the
opposite way for me lately. So when 1DHQ
announced via twitter at seven this morning that they were going to be
releasing another one of their songs momentarily, it sealed the deal. Things happen for a reason at the moment that
they need to happen and One Direction released a new song today and I needed it
so badly.
I used to say that joining the swim
team at my high school was the best decision I had made. Now the answer has changed, joining the One
Direction fandom was the best decision I have made. It’s not just me screaming at the mention of
anything related to this group of boys, buying outdated merchandise, or
listening to their music 24/7. It was
about me finding a safe place, a place with some of the most caring fellow-fans
the world has to offer. My time in the
fandom has helped me find my voice. I
realized that I am a feminist because of this dumb band. The world of 1D taught me that I am way too
talented to not chase my dreams. I
became so much more aware of the world around me and I talk to people from
Germany and South Africa and Canada now, but I would have never known about the
issues that other parts of the world are facing without this community that I
found. I found a group of people, that
though they struggle with confidence so much, love unconditionally.
Just because I am can be clumped
together with those girls that scream and mob these boy band members does not
mean that I am not a credible person. I
am still a very high functioning college student that got a perfect score on a
narrative I wrote for my writing class and works as a teaching assistant. I still have a plan form my life that is
realistic and not just “marry a rich band member” (though if the opportunity
arose, I would not deny). My social
life is fine and exactly where I want it!
Though I technically cannot be
considered a teenager anymore, I still am.
I still am a teenage girl at heart and I don’t ever want to stop, as
there is nothing wrong with being a teenage girl with an overwhelming capacity
to love. There is nothing wrong with
being passionate about something. It is
absolutely okay to have something that brings you immeasurable amount of joy. And
it is without a doubt, absolutely acceptable for ones source of those things to
be a boy band.
