I’ve always been a big fan of concerts. There’s something about the energy and spontaneity that often don’t come across when listening to an album. You feel like anything can happen. As a student attending University of Central Florida in Orlando, there’s no shortage of things to do.

Being a big city, Orlando is virtually limitless when it comes to recreational activities, such as mini golfing, water sporting events, college sports and, the college student’s No. 1 choice for fun, clubbing.

Personally, however, I’m drawn like a magnet to concerts. Though the more popular acts are always more expensive, lesser-known acts often deliver great shows at cheaper prices - perfect for a broke college kid like me.

So, in late January, I bought tickets to my first concert of the year: Arlo Guthrie. It was going to be a great show. The 68-year-old musician was celebrating the 50th anniversary of his classic song “Alice’s Restaurant,” which he only performs live during one tour per decade.

And, the venue was just 20 minutes from where I lived.

My mother called me just before I went to the show. “Have fun, but be aware of your surroundings,” she said. “That area of town is dicey.”

Once I got to the venue, my fears were eased. It was tiny, and there was a decent outlet mall where I hung out before the show began. In line, other concert-goers were cordial and friendly to me.

Guthrie, though approaching 70 years old, gave a great performance. I even met an acquaintance from school after the show.

“Mom, this place isn’t dangerous at all,” I said to her later. In fact, I saw two more concerts there - Graham Nash Feb. 2 and Gordon Lightfoot March 10. Both performers were great.

Exactly three months to the date of my last visit, that venue, The Plaza Live, became the site of a horrific incident, when Christina Grimmie, a former contestant on “The Voice,” was shot by an obsessed fan.

She was taken to the hospital in critical condition and died from her wounds.

Less than 48 hours later, 49 people were slaughtered by a homegrown terrorist in the exact same city. The event was the deadliest mass shooting in our nation’s history.

Now, I personally don’t think anyone is going to be obsessed with aging folk singers, but just one change to the scenario could have left me injured or dead.

It is certainly a sobering thought to think a place I visited several times with joy now serves as a grim reminder of reality’s dangers.

Despite all of our advances in communications, technology and science, there is no easy answer to the rise in these terroristic shootings - nor are there any easy solutions, much less any the government can agree upon.

It is simply in your best interest to not let your guard down; you never know what can happen.

Chris Dryfoos

intern

Lehigh Valley Press