This is the Life

Annie couldn’t believe it. She would’ve pinched herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming but the shock, coupled with the bruise on her arm from the other times she pinched herself, stopped her from doing so.

Take the world shake and stir and that’s what I got going on

It was amazing. One moment she was in the orphanage arguing with Miss Hannigan as usual and the next she was here in paradise.

I throw my cares up in the air and I don’t think they’re coming down

If only the other girls could see this! Molly would go nuts. They didn’t expect her to wash the windows, or scrub the floors, or anything that even resembled work. For once, she could just enjoy the sense of living, without anyone breathing down her neck.

Yeah, I love how it feels right now

Of course, she knew it wouldn’t last. Nice as everyone was, they would get tired of her eventually and Mr. Warbucks had told her quite bluntly that he wanted a boy instead. But she wouldn’t worry about that right now. For once she could know what it felt like to truly have a family.

This is the life, hold on tight, and this is the dream; it’s all I need

You never know where you’ll find it, and I’m gonna take my time, yeah

I’m still getting it right, this is the life

For so long, as long as she could remember, she had lived with the girls in the orphanage. She had actually come to view them, all of them, as some sort of a family. Screwed up, yeah, but a family nonetheless.

Taking in a whole new scene and I’m swimming with a new crowd

Shocking as it was, she had become accustomed to Miss Hannigan’s lectures, her insults, and her commands, sometimes going as far as to quote her lectures with her. For now, however long this lasted, she could allow herself to forget. Let the walls she had to build to protect herself come crashing down.

Breaking down the old four walls and I’m building them up from the ground

Is this what a real family was like? Could the family she had always dreamed possibly become a reality? The things she used to hear about castles and princess and wonderful families, could it all be true?

Yeah, I love how it feels right now

From the looks of it, yeah.

This is the life, hold on tight, and this is the dream; it’s all I need

You never know where you’ll find it, and I’m gonna take my time, yeah

I’m still getting it right, this is the life

It was just like a dream. She could take her time to get things right, instead of being beat down until she understood. She could ask for things, and not feel like a jerk for doing so. For once, she could truly feel like she belonged.

Gonna follow my own lead, yeah, kick back and feel the breeze

Nothing but the blue skies, as far as I can see

She remembered something she had once heard about rainbows. ‘It’s something that should be appreciated for what it is. Enjoyed for however long it lasts. Then let go of when it is gone.’

This is the life, hold on tight, and this is the dream; it’s all I need

She knew she would have no problem appreciating this, enjoying it while it lasted, but how could she let go? How could she possibly come back from this and slip back into the life of misery that surely awaited her back at the orphanage?

You never know where you’ll find it, and I’m gonna take my time, yeah,

I’m still getting it right, this is the life

Of course, she knew what she would do. When she got back, she would get by with the hope that someday she could have a family like this. While she knew she could never forget these people, she could live with the fact that one day she might have a family as loving as them.

One day.