Why Taylor Swift's Eras Tour took me back to the darkest moment of my life

Taylor Swift opened her Eras Tour show Friday with the line “It’s been a long time coming” from her song "Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince."

It seemed fitting. It has been five years since her last tour.

But that line had extra meaning for me.

I watched Taylor walk onstage in my hometown. In the city I am raising my family in. In the city I work in (I could literally see our office window from my seat at Paycor Stadium). And as she sang her first note of the night, I got immediate goosebumps. My wife, Macey, looked at me and said "I'm trying not to cry."

I'm not an emotional guy. I cried when my dog died a few years ago, but that's about it. Even I started tearing up.

Taylor Swift's music has impacted people across the globe. My wife and I have listened to her for the majority of our lives. But despite us both being fans for as long as we can remember, Taylor has meant more to us over the last few years than she ever did before.

Sure, she was there when we were in high school and growing in our teenage relationship together, but she also got us through an excruciating obstacle: infertility.

Taylor Swift's 'Fearless' era took me back to middle school

I listened to Taylor well before I knew my wife. The artist's debut, self-titled album came out in 2006, and her second, "Fearless," released in 2008.

After opening the night with her "Lover" era, Taylor brought life to 12-year-old David, sitting in the back of my grandparents' car, listening to "You Belong With Me" on my MP3 player. I forced myself to remember all the words because I had nothing better to do. We were on a road trip and they didn't listen to the radio the entire eight hours we spent in the car.

It seemed everyone at that concert had a similar memory. We were all dancing and singing like we were 12-year-olds.

More: Our 5 favorite moments from Taylor Swift's Friday show in Cincinnati

But "Fearless" isn't just a reminder of those middle school days for me. I was a big Taylor fan growing up, but I wouldn't have considered myself a Swiftie until I started dating my wife in 2011. She had every one of Swift's album, and we'd listen to all of them while riding around Piqua, Ohio, in her Ford Focus (she's older and got her driver's license before I did).

Those songs took me back to those young love days.

Taylor Swift's 'Red' was a reminder of easy times

As soon as Swift ran out in her signature "22" look – a hat and a white shirt that says "Not a lot going on at the moment" (although this shirt removed the "not") – the crowd began dancing (yes, like we were 22). The record is filled with breakup tracks, but many of the songs are fun and dance-worthy, making it hard not to move when they come on.

And that "fun" vibe fit my 2012 era like a glove.

My wife looked at me when the "Red" portion started and said, "This was the first album to come out while we were dating." We instantly began recalling our rushed trip to Target to get it. We had to hear those bonus tracks.

Life was easy back then. I'd sing these songs while driving to school, or on the way to the movie theaters with Mace (she worked there, and we got to see unlimited movies for free).

But not every "Red" song is party-worthy. "All Too Well" is a beautiful but painful track, and has taken on another life since Taylor released the 10-minute version in 2021. Her performance of it Friday was maybe her most powerful of the night, and the addition of the snow-like confetti was an incredible touch.

The stark contrast between that song and one like "22" was a reminder that not everything was bright and cheery back in that era. I had to deal with my parents' divorce. My wife also had family issues. And going through those challenges only prepared us for what was ahead.

'Folklore' and 'Evermore' got us through our biggest obstacle

Taylor's other eras brought back memories as well. "Reputation" gave me reinforced confidence after having a falling out with my father. "1989" was the first Taylor Swift concert Mace and I ever went to, and we blasted those songs during my college years (I even remembering pleading to my friend how a line in "Blank Space" was "so fire" after having a few beers).

However, listening to our favorite singer perform songs from "Folklore" and "Evermore" reminded us of going through our most difficult stage in life.

Taylor released these albums when everyone was struggling with anxiety: in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The cabin she had onstage during the "Folklore" portion of the show seemed fitting, considering we all had cabin fever back then.

But Mace and I had much more going on.

After six months of trying to get pregnant that year, she finally had a positive test in October. Less than 24 hours after we celebrated with a big fried chicken dinner, she had a miscarriage.

This was just three months after "Folklore" came out. Hearing Taylor sing "My Tears Ricochet" transported me to moments when I had to comfort my wife as she cried. Or to times when I prayed, pleading to God to just let us be parents.

The next album, "Evermore," came out in December 2020. I remember us reading Taylor's surprise announcement on Instagram (not knowing the other person was reading the same thing), and saying "holy s---" in unison.

I blasted "'Tis the Damn Season" that Christmas. And the next Christmas, another holiday without a baby.

For two years, we tried (and failed) to have a successful pregnancy. We went through seven months of fertility treatments, just to get negative tests every single month.

We were hopeless. But Taylor's music gave us an escape. "Folklore" and "Evermore" were all we listened to. And hearing it live, seeing Taylor sing these songs that mean so much to us in-person; it was surreal.

My dad era

My wife woke me up from a deep sleep when the world learned Taylor Swift was coming out with a new album, "Midnights," which would be released Oct. 21, 2022.

That date was just 10 days before our first child was born.

In February 2022, we finally took a break from fertility treatments. We were going to maybe try in vitro fertilization in a couple of months, but had to save money. It's incredibly expensive.

Somehow, while taking that break, we got pregnant. And Marty James Wysong was born Oct. 31, 2022.

This era was much, much different than the last. Hearing "Midnight Rain" and "Lavender Haze" on Friday reminded me of driving back and forth from our house to the hospital, running on little sleep to no sleep and blaring those songs to stay awake. Listening to "Karma" as Taylor closed out the show evoked images of our little boy's smile whenever we sing these songs to him.

This has been a good era. A great era.

I'm not sure what Taylor's next one will be. For me, I'm working on being a dad of two soon. Five months after giving birth to Marty, or MJ is what we call him, we shockingly got pregnant again. We weren't even trying this time.

It's funny how life works. The due date for baby Wysong No. 2? Dec. 13 – Taylor Swift's birthday.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Eras Tour review: Taylor Swift took me to great (and terrible) moments