Song of the Week: "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus

Haha.... Okay, I know you might be rolling your eyes right now.  That's fine.  Miley Cyrus is kind of old news these days.  But I have totally bonded with this song over the past 4 years.  When I first started working at the Boys & Girls Club in 2009, one of the teens was showing me a slideshow video thing she made of pictures of her and her friends.  "The Climb" was the song playing with the video and I liked it.  Fresh off the mission, I was totally out of the music loop, so when I asked them what song it was, they all kind of looked at me like, "Really?  You've never heard this?"  Well... that was my first exposure to Miley Cyrus.

This same teen has since grown to be one that I am closest to at the Club.  I care about her like she's my sister or daughter all mixed into one.  A few years ago she asked me to play the guitar so she could sing it at the talent show.  We did.  It was the first time her mom heard her sing in public... because this girl is shy and would never sing in front of her mom at home.

I love the message of the song.  Motivating!!  Last year when I did the Halloween half-marathon in Provo, I included "The Climb" on my playlist.  Although it's not my typical upbeat running kind of music, it has a good pace if I'm running to each beat.  And the message of it motivates me to keep going.

I recently watched "The Hannah Montanna Movie" again and love the part of the movie when she sings this song. I know, I'm an emotional softy!

Lastly, just this past week at the Club, we were having "Squad Wars" (each staff has their squad of teens) and there was a "sing-off" portion the staff had prepared.  Each squad had to sing a song and we were judged by some other staff members.  The final squad sang "The Climb" and it was a magical moment in my treasure box of Club memories. :)  By the end of the song we were ALL singing... even the tough boys slumped on the couch were clapping and totally into it.  My staff guys were singing their hearts out, and I literally had tears in my eyes.  I thought, "THIS is what it's all about!!"  People of all ages, backgrounds, and circumstances singing "The Climb" together at the Boys & Girls Club. Ha. :)

I will always love this song.  I will always sing it out loud when I'm driving and it comes on.  Always.