Today I had the pleasure of watching the public memorial to Michael Jackson and I am truly touched. This man gave of his heart and his spirit in a way that is difficult for most. He transcended race, color, class, and much more through his journey on this earth as the greatest entertainer who ever lived.
I salute him for the sacrifices he made in order to share that part of himself with the world. Thank you Michael for giving unconditionally of yourself and you ideas through music. Michael gave something to the world that is special, kind, loving, and full of light.
This man will never be forgotten and neither will the image of him with a big afro as a little boy growing up in the seventies. From the first time he stepped foot upon the stage he gave off an aura of greatness.
“WE HAD HIM” Maya Angelou
Beloveds, now we know that we know nothing Now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips like a puff of summer wind
Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace
Sing our songs among the stars and and walk our dances across the face of the moon
In the instant we learn that Michael is gone we know nothing
No clocks can tell our time and no oceans can rush our tides
With the abrupt absence of our treasure
Though we our many, each of us is achingly alone
Piercingly alone
Only when we confess our confusion can we remember that he was a gift to us and we did have him
He came to us from the Creator, trailing creativity in abundance
Despite the anguish of life he was sheathed in mother love and family love and survived and did not more than that
He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style
We had him
Whether we knew who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his
We had him
Beautiful, delighting our eyes
He raked his hat slant over his brow and took a pose on his toes for all of us and we laughed and stomped our feet for him
We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing
He gave us all he had been given
Today in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana’s Blackstar Square, in
Johannesburg, in Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama and Birmingham England, we are
missing Michael JacksonBut we do know that we had him
And we are the world.