I really don’t know what my life would be like without music. Nor do I care to imagine.

So much of life’s biggest moments are defined by music. From falling asleep on long car rides to the sound of the Beatles and Elvis Presley as a kid to waking up every morning to John Mayer on my alarm clock today, my entire existence exudes my love of music.

In middle school, I would lock myself in my bedroom for hours with Backstreet Boys on repeat, pouring over magazine articles. When my grandmother died in the ninth grade I found solace in their song, “Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely” when nothing else seemed to make much sense at the time.

In high school, not much changed. Switchfoot’s The Beautiful Letdown eventually became my anthem with its introspective lyrics and my constant questioning of what life in college and the dreaded “real world” would be like.

Today, I can’t help but think of how this early obsession with music shaped who I am. While I no doubt was made fun of for my music taste as a kid, I know that my early love of music is what led me to creating You Sing I Write and had a major factor in my determination to become a music journalist.

Very few things in life have the power to connect and heal the way music does. Whether it’s hearing Adele’s heartbreaking new ballad, “Someone Like You” to convince you to move on from a relationship or witnessing that favorite song performed at a concert for the first time in years, music plays a huge part in our day-to-day lives, more so then we often realize.

It’s organizations like MusiCares® that transcend that love of music to an even bigger purpose: helping those in need. For music to provide emergency financial assistance, addiction recovery and safe harbor rooms, it is furthering it’s job as a mere hobby to some and actually making a difference in someone’s life. I can’t imagine a better partnership.

Luckily, as a music blogger I get to experience this firsthand and evaluate it each day. It’s not always an easy job to do, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Disclaimer: This blog post has been written for entry into the MusiCares® Music Blogger contest.

MusiCares® helps and supports the people who dedicate their lives to making the music I blog about. Please join the Be A Part of the Heart MusiCares® mosaic at https://beapartoftheheart.com and be entered for a chance to win a trip the 2012 GRAMMYS®!