The death of a legend. Really??

Ok- I am bound to piss some people off with this blog, but being pissed off is a feeling; an emotion and I believe that feeling something is a good thing.

So, in case you have been living in a cave for the last week, let me bring you up to date; Michael Jackson has died, and apparently the entire WORLD is grieving. I confess, I have been following the coverage closely. As a child of the 80's, I grew up loving MJ, thinking he was "like, totally awesome!"

There have been allegations against MJ in the last 10 years or so that tarnished his rising star. We have heard way more about his private life than any of us have a right to hear. This man lived his live under the very unforgiving eye of the public and for that I feel very sorry for him.

So now for the parts of this story that have really gotten under my skin. Perhaps these feelings are residual feelings from my 10 years with TIP and seeing everyday people struggling and grieving the death of their loved ones. So here are some things that I think need to be said:

1. Take away the allegations, the title of "King of Pop" and you have a plain old human. If you are a believer you know that when he gets his final reward, the real King will welcome him with open arms as his does all His precious children
2. I would estimate that around the country, hundreds, maybe a thousand people died that day. Did President Obama call those families, because I guarantee you the person who they lost was just as important to them as MJ. He is the peoples President. Not just MJ's. How hurtful and disrespectful
3. The Reverend Al Sharpton REALLY said that today should be declared a National Day of Mourning and that a commerative stamp made in MJ's honor. Really? Come on now. Am I missing something here? Farrah Faucet died that day too. Ed McMahon died a few days before both of them and the guy who pitches oxy clean a few days later. Maybe we need a dead celebrity day like we Presidents day. It would be nice to have another paid vacation day. (Ok- this paragraph isn't very nice, but I am SO tired of the way we humans idolize and worship celebrity. Kevin Costner excluded)

So, as I said on my face book page- lets take this grief that is floating around the world and use it to be better to each other. Practice random acts of kindness. Hold the door open for the person behind you, pay for the coffee for the car behind you in line, smile at the guy who pulls out in front of you instead of flipping him the bird. Pray. Sing. Act silly with your kids. But most of all be kind to everyone and don't judge because in the end, when we reach our final reward, Jesus loves us all the same.

Just like the song we learned in CCD (for us Catholics) or bible class: Jesus loves the little children (you and me) ALL the children of the world. Red and yellow, black or white, we are precious in His sight, Jesus louves the little children of the world."

And as Margaret Mead said: "Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world, indeed it is the only thing that has"

So, to wrap this up, I'd like to leave you with a short line from the great song "We Are the World": Change can only come when we stand together as one"

Love to you all-

Dawn