To Sara Bareilles, From a Fan With Cerebral Palsy

Sara,

I remember the first time I heard your music. After the first 10 seconds of the song preview, I was dancing to every single song in Barnes and Noble. I immediately bought all of your albums and listened to them on repeat. I really love “Hold My Heart,” because it reminds me of how fragile our hearts are and to be really careful who you give it to hold. I wasn’t for a very long time and ended up getting very hurt. Another one of my favorites, is “Little Black Dress.” It is my breakup song. I always listen to it on repeat and it always makes me feel so much better.

I have a physical disability called cerebral palsy and at the end of 2013, I had a five-hour long orthopedic surgery to realign my bones and release tight muscles. It took me over a year to get back to where I was and “Brave” helped me to get through every painful physical therapy session. In March of this year, I got to come to New York with my college and sing at Carnegie Hall!

The one show I wanted to see was your musical “Waitress.” It changed my life. I was in a relationship for eight months last year. The second half of the relationship, he was controlling, emotionally and verbally abusive. I ended the relationship late last year. After hearing the music and story of “Waitress,” I knew to never go back to him. Being a woman with a physical disability, “Waitress” showed me how to be confident and love myself from the inside and out. Thank you for everything you do. You inspire me every day. I hope to tell you thank you for everything you’ve done for me in person one day.

Emma

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Photo via Sara Bareilles’ Facebook page.