Posts Tagged → Michael Jackson
Sad Eventful Day
June 25th 2009 was meant to be an exciting day with the first ever NBA draft for the Oklahoma City Thunder. With the Thunder getting the third draft pick it was sure to be a great day. It was a Thursday that was going to be a Friday for me because I was taking off work on Friday. What a sad day yesterday with the loss of two famous people in our country yesterday and three in the last week. Those who have read this blog know that I am anything but a celebrity worshiper. In fact, I often chastise others that do engage in celebrity worship. With that said, I have to admit that Michael Jackson was a huge part of my teenage years. When his Thriller album came out, I was in 10th grade and I will never forget the impact he had on my teenage years. For the tough guys that I tried to emulate, it was not cool to listen to his music though we were all closet Michael Jackson fans. I remember no one would admit to listening to his music yet he sold more albums than anyone in history. Someone was buying them. I remember listening to his music and then when my friends would come over I would quickly switch the radio back over to the classic rock station so my friends would think I was cool. Looking back I would never choose that life style again where I could not be myself. For that reason to this day I cannot stand classic rock music. I sometimes forget with my own kids the pressure that people put on you as a teenager. The pressure they put on themselves to fit into the group.
Though he made some mistakes, I cannot deny his impact on my own life. In fact here I am at 43 years old and I have more than 20 mp3’s of his songs on this very computer I am typing on. He made some terrible choices that I would hope that he regretted afterward. I know I have made some huge mistakes in my own life that I would change if I could do them again.
Farrah Fawcett was a part of my younger years with her role in Charlie’s Angels. Later she was in several movies including the Burning Bed. That movie was a wake up call to anyone that considered being a spouse abuser for sure. I remember all my friends had that famous bathing suit poster on their walls. I never had one myself because my parents would not allow that at the time. I often wondered what makes people act so crazy with celebrities and I still do. In this case however, I lose any sense of rationale. No one can deny that Michael Jackson was unusual and in some cases lacked some common sense. Nevertheless his existence brought back my teenage years. When I say he lacked some common sense, I refer to his continued exposure to children even after being accused of child molestation. Most people would take that first accusation as a lesson to not put themselves in that situation again.
In all fairness, if this had been anyone else I would be less likely to give him a second chance in the same situation. That double standard goes back to the nostalgia that he brought back to me. This amazing news was just hours after hearing of the death of Farrah Fawcett and just two days after Ed McMahon. Farrah’s fight with cancer was such an opportunity to shine the light on this disease to get people involved in finding a cure. This opportunity was cut short with the loss of Michael Jackson, ironically by a heart attack. Both heart trouble and cancer are the two largest causes of death in the United States. I know it sounds like I am speaking in a way that Michael Jackson’s death was unfair to Farrah. It may seem that way because I do have an emotional connection to both of these diseases.
I lost my mom in 2005 to a heart attack and my mother in-law in 2002 to cancer. My mom had a serious heart attack when she was only 29 years old. This attack caused permanent damage to her heart and she suffered many heart attacks over the next 30 years. My incredibly supportive dad stood by her side stressing out for years. He was so stressed at times that he looked terrible. I really loved my mom and miss her so much. It has never been the same since she has been gone. My mother in-law had many illnesses over the years and one day we found out that she had cancer. By then it was too late to do anything. My mother in-law was a very good person and my wife is just like her. Ever since then my wife has been actively involved in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. This helps her feel like she is doing something for her mom because she never had time with her own mom.
This blog post may seem a little down but a death always brings this out in me. Michael Jackson was so big during my most influential years that it is difficult to believe that it is true. With such a big event, this will certainly go down as one of the biggest events that I will always remember…even bigger than Elvis Presley’s death. When these things happen it really makes me begin to think and put things into perspective. It makes me think about our purpose on this earth. Did we just simply land here by accident’? Was there an explosion one day and living creatures just evolved from no where? Is there purpose? It can make a person begin to think of their value in this world.
In my case it makes me thankful for what I have. I have Jesus who died for my sins so that I would have a chance to be forgiven for my mistakes, and bad choices. I for one believe we are not an accident and someone put us here for a reason. This person is God. Anyone that is honest with themselves and looks the creation of this world would have to admit that it is so well designed that it had to be done on purpose. Just look at a tree leaf and see the awesomeness of HIS creation. God is almighty and deserves a glory greater than all of man could give him. He is honest, just, powerful, forgiving, loving, and fair. I think he deserves our true worship. With all the emotional feelings that a singer can give us, it cannot compare to the glory that God deserves.
I truly wish the best for Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, and Ed McMahon and hope they were blessed enough to know that Jesus died for them and they had purpose. I have watched countless interviews over the last 24 hours about how Michael Jackson as much money and fame as he had still desired purpose. God loved him and that is the greatest purpose a person can have. If he could have ever realized this, deep down it would give him a sense of value that a trillion dollars could not compare. As bad as we all were at following the guidance that God has given us, he loved us enough to come to us in the form of a man to die in our place. If that ever gets into your spirit, it will bring tears to your eyes that anyone could really care for you that much. I feel blessed to have been able to know this revelation. I feel blessed to have such a wonderful wife for the last 20 years. God also blessed me with two incredible sons that I would never trade for anything on this earth.
It is interesting how a death can make you think about things that we actively try to avoid thinking about. I have never met any of these celebrities but their loss made me think about what is important. I hope I am not the only one that feels this way. I know I am not because I scrolled across the radio this morning and I heard many stations that spoke of the death of Michael Jackson as an event they will never forget. I heard those on the local sports station saying the same thing and they are famous for belittling celebrities all the time. I have heard them make fun of him many times though this morning I heard the same people discussing this event seriously as a moment they will never forget. In the end, this in my opinion is a good thing because death is something we all will face some day and many do not wish to think about it or their purpose. Events like this make people think of them and can make people think about what is really important in their lives.
Today I took off work so I could go to the doctor to get the results of a heart echo that I had last week. I often have these anxiety attacks where my heart starts racing and I feel short of breath. Since I lost my mom from a heart attack, I often worry about them. After talking to many of my family members I find that I am not the only one that has them. It is scary when they happen and it makes me feel like I am not able to breath. I found out later that the accelerated breathing makes it worse. My results came back this morning and my doctor said that it looked normal.
Well now that I have pretty much “bummed out” everyone with my blog post I guess I will get on with a great weekend. Remember to recognize what you have and be thankful for them. It is too easy to focus on the bad things and miss out on the great things and people you have around you.