RIP Michael Jackson

What a bad dream today is. I heard the announcers on the radio paying tribute to Michael Jackson this morning and wondered why. Then came news that he has passed away. The rest of the day I spent reading about the hows and whens and why's ... and then it hit me. It's hard to imagine a world without Michael Jackson. I still remembered the first time I "discovered" pop music. The radio played Beat It and I was immediately hooked. Michael Jackson had just released Thriller and I remembered how enamoured I was with his music. I collected every single album he had, sang to his songs, followed his every move from the tabloids and magazines. Then came the weird years. Sure, after the music, everyone wanted to see the "freak" that he's become and I guess for a while people forgot about the great music and performer and instead just saw the freak. CNN is giving him lots of airtime today and it brought back memories of the consummate performer who had us all enthralled with his music and his life. The thing is, I've grown older and discovered more singers and different music along the way. But one thing that has not changed is how much Michael Jackson has been a part of my growing up years at one time and how I now realized that he is irreplaceable. I just can't imagine the world without Michael Jackson. I think a lot of people, especially those who grew up with his music, feels the same way. May you finally find peace, Michael.