Yu Too

I have only ever had two major life goals. The first was to see U2 in concert. The second was to make a bigger list of goals.

My dad and I drove down to Raleigh, NC to see them play live and it was.... unfulfilling. 1, it was a stadium show – there were like 90,000+ people there. 2, it was really loud – the sound was indistinguishable at times. 3, we were realllly far away – you could see that they were on stage, but that was about it – most of the time I was forced to watch the screen.

Now, before you call me ungrateful I must clarify something. I’ve been listening to U2 since I was four years old. My dad had a tape with U2 and Talking Heads on it and I loved it, and I think I thought they were black and was so surprised when I saw a picture of them. There was a time, before I had a job, when I would come home after school every day and do my homework while watching a U2 DVD. At any rate, U2 have been a huge deal to me for most of my life.

I don’t know quite how to explain it. It certainly was not a very spiritual experience at all. It just felt really showy and impersonal. I guess my expectations were WAY too high. There were a couple cool moments though, like when they went from “One” to “Amazing Grace” and then into “Where The Streets Have No Name”. And a few clips with Aung San Suu Kyi and Desmond Tutu were very moving.

I’m glad I went. It’s best to have your dreams crushed when you’re young so you can move on with life. I’ve seen them and now I can be content with knowing that the DVDs are better than seeing them live… they’re even better than the real thing.