I hadn’t planned on going to see U2 Sunday. I wasn’t a huge fan, and I figured I could listen to the music, which was bound to be extremely loud, outside the stadium.

However, in a unique turn of circumstances, I was able to obtain a free ticket and soon found myself inside the stadium waiting for the concert to start.

The stadium had been completely transformed. The turf was covered in metal, and a gigantic stage, which Bono referred to as a “spaceship,” was in the center.

He explained that the purpose of the elaborate contraption was so he and the band could be closer to their fans.

As U2 went through their set, the moment of togetherness they were seeking happened. It was truly an experience to hear thousands of people singing each song with one voice. People who would most likely never have talked to, liked or even merely smiled at one another suddenly found a commonality through the epic music of U2.

It was at this moment that I realized why I like concerts so much. The togetherness and common ground created by the event was exhilarating. Furthermore, it is rare to find such great synergy among so many different people anywhere else.

And I think that’s a shame.

Some might roll their eyes and discount what I’m saying as just another emotional appeal for everyone to love one another. That’s probably because we humans spend most of our time dealing with arguments and violence.

Violence is our entertainment and excitement. We watch it, sing about it and enjoy anticipating the physical altercation of people. After all, this opinion page wouldn’t be popular if people didn’t come to it every day looking for a fight with the columnist who manages to make them mad.

This is just who we are as human beings.

However, despite the many negative aspects of our nature, we still manage to find those rare moments when people put aside their thirst for conflict and become one. These moments come at celebrations and concerts and also in the face of great disaster.

It’s hard not to sing along with a stadium of thousands enraptured by the music, and it is likewise hard to turn one’s nose up at anyone when they are witnessing and experiencing the same horrors and trials that you are.

Perhaps that is why events like Sept. 11 and Hurricane Katrina were so pivotal – they caused everyone to drop what they were doing and notice the person next to them.

It shouldn’t take such radical events such as concerts or disasters to make us acknowledge one another. We should constantly look outside ourselves and try to understand each other, or at least smile at one another a little more.

Try it.

Don’t wait for the next big band or disaster to roll into town. Smile at someone, have a conversation and find common ground with people. Speak to someone in an elevator. Although you might want to feel out the elevator situation first; it is absolutely unnerving to some people when you speak to them in an elevator for some reason.

Anyhow, when you do this, the result is at its least-satisfying and at its most-exhilarating. Beautiful things happen when we drop our inhibitions and sing together.