I’m 89 and a huge Taylor Swift fan. I didn’t let my age stop me from flying to Paris to see her in concert

Nancy Strong saw Taylor Swift in Paris with two of her grandchildren.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Nancy Strong. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My granddaughter, Jennifer, and I were visiting my brother in New York when tickets for the second leg of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour were released in Europe last fall.

It was the middle of the night because of the time difference. But we hit the internet the second they became available. “We’ve got to make this happen,” Jennifer said as we joined the virtual ticket line.

I stayed up for as long as possible before giving up and going to bed. Then, around 3 a.m., Jennifer burst into my room, threw on the lights, and yelled, “Grammy, Grammy — I got the tickets!”

Of course, I jumped out of bed screaming like crazy. It was stupid fun. We jumped up and down. We were going to Paris to see Taylor on May 9, 2024.

I’ve been a Swiftie since September 2009, when I watched the MTV Music Video Awards show at my home in Dallas.

Unfortunately, it was the infamous night that Kanye West jumped onstage, grabbed the microphone, and interrupted her acceptance speech.

At first, I was confused, thinking it was some kind of stunt. Then I realized it wasn’t. “How could he do that to that young, vulnerable, sweet girl? ” I thought.