Honors College Art & Science of Emotions Fall 2017 (1:20 p.m.) Love Journal | Page 19

The intended audience of the song “The Best Day” was Swift’s mother, that is who it is written for. But, I believe the audience
has grown; the audience is anyone who has experienced the unique relationship between a parent and child. I was ten when this song was
released and I was not old enough to appreciate it at the time. I believe you do not fully understand this song and the message behind it until
you are older, and you are able to look back and realize all the things your parents did for you growing up. We see ourselves grow up in this
song through the story it tells.
The verses and bridges of this song speak of memories Swift has at different ages; these are the parts of the songs that I con-
nect with similar memories of my own. I think of playing hide n seek with my parents on the huge old wooden playscape at the elementary
school in my neighborhood, I think of going sledding and building snowmen, painting in the kitchen, marching in a line around the house dressed
up like we were in a marching band banging on pots and pans that were our drums. I think about when I was in junior high and I would get cry
about not getting a good grade and my dad would pull me into his lap and hug me until I stopped crying and then he would make me laugh.
These verses bring back countless memories with my own parents as I was growing up, which I think is something so unique and special about
this song. The verses are what bring back the memories filled with love.
The chorus changes throughout the song, but always ends with, “I had the best day with you today.” The first two times the
chorus is used they follow the same pattern; the first line starts with “I don’t know why…” which she follows with something she didn’t
know at that age in her life. The second line starts with, “But I know…” which is followed by something that was a minor absolute at that
stage in her life that acted as a small comfort. The third line is again, “I don’t know…” which is something she was uncertain of at that
certain age. The fourth line is the same both times in the first version of the chorus “But I know I had the best day with you today.” The
fourth line of the chorus is the most important line of the whole song; it shows that no matter what was going on in what stage of her life
she had the constant love of her parents.
19