Listening to this album made me a lot more emotional than I was expecting. Today as I sat there listening to these songs at my real adult job, it’s like I suddenly remembered a younger, more naive version of myself who thought her first crush at 11 was True Love™️. It was a bittersweet feeling, because as much as I believe in seeing aging as growth, there’s no denying that remembering my younger self always gives me a sense of loss for the me who doesn’t quite exist anymore.
But out of all the emotions, what struck me most was something I read another person say–that you can see Taylor’s kindness to the music she created and the emotions she felt back when she was young, because it’s true. There’s this very…caring feel to the re-released songs, like she’s cradling the younger Taylor and cherishing who she was back then. It’s so easy to cringe at who you used to be, but this new version of Fearlessinspiresyou to treat the kid/teenager you used to be with care and love and acknowledge their role in who you are now.
It will be a while before I can stop feeling feelings about this album, or writing about them.
