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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CWU chapter.

The new year feels like it’s not really off to a great start with the recent devastating and destructive news that has impacted our country. The emotional event that transpired in Washington, DC left me with a lot of worried questions, such as whether we as a nation are choosing to relive our darkest moments or if we are all choosing to truly be dedicated to making significant changes for the future. There’s a mixed range of emotions that everyone is experiencing right now, and it’s totally okay to sit with those emotions and realize that they are valid. It’s moments like this where the importance of having hope will eventually outweigh the fear we might feel, but we have to genuinely believe in it and trust it. More importantly, we have to try to cultivate hope. I created a small playlist of songs a few months ago that got me through the year of 2020 and I think listening to them again as we transition into this year will be meaningful, so I wanted to share my music.

BIGGER by Beyoncé

Ivana Cajina
Ivana Cajina / Unsplash
This beautiful and uplifting song by Beyoncé is from the album, The Lion King: The Gift. Originally dedicated to her children, this song highlights the significance of remembering your self-worth and encouraging others to have that same vision. Beyoncé puts into perspective that as humans, we are all truly a part of something bigger. If you enjoy this song, I recommend checking out the rest of the album because Beyoncé was the executive producer, and she did an amazing job creating such inspirational music.

Light Of Love by Florence + The Machine

holding hands
Photo by Joe Yates from Unsplash
Florence + the Machine has always been one of my favorite bands and I remember when this song was released in Spring of 2020 when everything felt like it was crashing. Listening to this song honestly got me through that last quarter of school when it seemed difficult to concentrate or have a strong sense of hope. This song felt very relatable to parts of my life and my emotions but more importantly, listening to the song gave me a more positive outlook. Florence reminds her audience that we don’t have to go blindly into the dark because we all carry a light of love.

Good Days by SZA

woman sitting on blanket located on shoreline
Photo by Cody Black from Unsplash
This song was the most recent addition to my playlist as it was just released in December. SZA’s voice is very powerful as she sings this song to look forward and believe in good days. Whenever I listen to this, I try to not make sense of whatever is holding me back and I just focus on a better future ahead.

I hope listening to this small portion of my playlist feels like it can bring some positivity into your life right now with everything that is going on. If there’s one thing we can all tightly hold on to for the moment, it’s the lives of those we love and the spirit of having hope for whatever lies ahead.

Leslie is the Vice President and Chief Editor for Her Campus Central Washington University. As a senior at CWU studying English Literature, she hopes to one day become an investigative journalist. Her many interests include playing tennis, watching The Office, and traveling. Leslie is from Issaquah, Washington and she has been writing for Her Campus for two years.