Michael

We grew up together, although we never met. We were born the same year, 1958. Most of us just knew him as "Michael," first name only. I was a teeny bopper when he and his brothers were making hits like "ABC" and "Rockin' Robin." He was one of the most brilliant people of my generation, gone much too soon. Today as I was looking through the artichokes at the grocery store, one of his songs played over the intercom and it occurred to me that it was three years ago today that he died. I was in the middle of some of my own personal drama then, so while I knew he had passed, it really didn't register as much to me at the time.

The world is not kind to the brilliantly talented. Like an insecure schoolyard bully, life likes to knock people like that down a few pegs. Would we be happier if everyone was mediocre, like us? Artists as gifted as Michael Jackson don't have the luxury of living ordinary lives. If they are to be true to themselves, they can never fly under the radar.

And Michael didn't. To call him eccentric is an understatement. He was at once a shrewd business man and a fun loving child. He changed the world of music forever, yet never found any lasting peace in his own personal world. His music lifted us to joyful heights,  yet the man himself was so unhappy he had to find stronger drugs just to ease his pain.

Sadly, Michael and I will not be growing old together, but his music lives on forever.

Susan

"Rockin' Robin" written by Leon René.