A letter of farewell

Last night I said goodbye to an old friend. Well, we haven't been friends for that long but it has been a wonderful time. It started about three or four years ago when on a whim I decided to switch my radio over to listen to something different. And that was the beginning to my love of classical music.
Now this obviously wasn't the first time I had ever heard classical music, but it was the start to my love for it. As I listened to it more I began to notice all the different elements, the chords, the harmonious ways each section would mesh together to create this complex, beautiful sound. And noticing all of these elements and taking them in just got better over time.
See, that's the thing about classical music: unless you grew up with it or have a deep emotional connection (as in, your mom plays with the symphony or something like that) it takes a little bit to get used to it. It isn't an immediate thing, or at least it wasn't for me. And I wish more people would give it a chance. The music is a pure expression of emotions translated into an audio format. And some of the pieces are downright beautiful; there is no other way to describe it. I don't find many pop songs that I feel I could call beautiful.
At ten o'clock last night, Classic99 played their final piece, Beethoven's 9th. I sheepishly admit that I did not know it that well (see, I'm still a baby in getting to hear all of these great pieces) but it was wonderful. It was a great piece to go out with. After it was over, there was just… silence. And I gotta tell you, that felt almost like the death of a friend. I was expecting someone to come on and say goodbye for the last time, but they didn't and now I'm glad they didn't. Because at that point, there was no need for words. The piece was finished, the broadcast was finished, and those moments of silence, to me, meant that it was truly over. It really hit me then that this was final.
This morning, since my car radio was left on the station, I caught a few seconds of the new station that bought Classic99 which is a contemporary Christian station called JoyFM. I can't stand JoyFM, which does not make this any easier. I immediately started to find another station to program in its place and settled on 88.1, an independent station that plays an eclectic mix of genres of music. It might turn out to be an okay replacement.
So goodbye Classic99. I don't think anyone I know will quite understand what you meant for me. It was a great time while it lasted and I will truly miss you.