One song that played on repeat during my time in Italy was Bastille’s “Pompeii”. I have listened to it many times since being back in the States and I must say that if ever I am feeling down, this song lifts me up. When I was in college my Art History class covered the destruction of Pompeii, engulfed by Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. As sad as the story is, I am fixated by it because of the intensity of the excavation; the preserved bodies are truly powerful. People are praying, protecting their children, and even in some cases running- but all of those actions are hopeful, hopeful that they will be saved. And I think about that when I hear the lyrics to Bastille’s “Pompeii”.

(“Great clouds roll over the hills bringing darkness from above.” -Sometimes life throws you unexpected obstacles)

(“But if you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing’s changed at all?” -In those tough times, you just have to take a moment to breathe and look back. Not everything in your life has changed)

(“How am I going to be an optimist about this?” -Always search to find the positive in a negative)

Recently I have started to watch the show “Mad Men” and most of the time I find myself despising the characters but there was this one moment when Betty was sad and Carla said to her “Go outside, you’ll find everything is just as you left it”. How simple and true is that? Just because one aspect of your life is out of your control, doesn’t mean that everything is, it’s important to remember that. And while the people of Pompeii didn’t survive Mount Vesuvius, they still showed signs of love and optimism. In the end, that’s all we really have.