A year ago today....

ABBA announced their new album, a new concert, the two new songs, and the start of a new voyage...  I remember sitting their, anticipating the live stream event, wondering what ABBA could possibly have up their sleeves.  And then the even started.  We got to hear I Still Have Faith In You for the first time ever, and I remember I didn't quite know how to react at first.  Agnetha and Frida sounded so different yet so familiar.  Then came the announcement that ABBA decided to do one more album.  The moment Benny said it was available for pre-order on the website, I jumped straight onto their site and of course it hadn't even been launched yet and i couldn't get on.  I reloaded the page a million times until like 20 minutes later, I finally got on and pre-ordered the album on record and 2 CDs because I had no idea what was what.  Honestly it was one of the best moments of my life, and I still can't believe I got to live through that, experience and witness it all.  For the first time in my life, I got to really be a part of ABBA history instead of just reading about it.  When Don't Shut Me Down played, I was so ecstatic.  That song really have off the same ABBA vibes we all knew and loved, and after a few more listens, both songs quickly became my favorites.  

I remember being a bit unsure of the whole ABBA-tar project, quite skeptical of how it would work.  I didn't really like the costumes, they took a lot to get used to, but ultimately everything worked out for the best.  The Voyage show just played it's 100th show, and people show up night after night to see ABBA perform in their custom built arena.  I've only seen clips, fan footage, and I have yet to go myself, but, even though I still have my opinions and concerns, I love this show with my entire heart and soul and I cannot wait to see it for myself someday.

Gosh, I'm just so happy. We're living in a world where ABBA came back together, released an amazing album that I listen to all the time, and made a ground-breaking show that they will be playing for years to come.   And then they all got together PUBLICLY at the ABBA voyage premiere, at what will probably be their last appearance ever as a group.  I still remember what it was like before the two songs came out, always wondering if and when we'd ever get to hear the new songs.  I never game up hope, I remained optimistic about everything, the delays, the ABBAtars, and ABBA gave us so much more than we'd ever expected.

Thank you ABBA, for everything.  This last year has been incredible, and I could never have asked for anything better.