R.I.P. Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson via last.fm

At 3:15 on June 25, 2009, legendary musician Michael Jackson died from cardiac arrest.

I found this out as I walked into the break room of my work place at approximately 3:45. At the time, CNN had only been able to confirm that he was in a Coma and it was the L.A. Times that was reporting his death.

This came as shock to me and at first I was disbelieving of the headline. It would be another hour before it would be confirmed by Fox News and the hospital, and at 4:45 in the afternoon my father called and gave me the news while I was returning home from work.

To say the least I will miss him. I am unsure if words will be enough to convey just how much, but I will try.

I was nearly ten years old the first time I heard a Michael Jackson song and that song was Beat It followed closely by Thriller then Billie Jean. This initial youthful discovery was thanks to the television show Solid Gold which was my favorite show at the time while living on Kadena AFB in Okinawa, Japan. I remember hearing the opening to the song Beat It and thinking that it was unlike anything I had heard before as my parents so often played Neil Diamond or Barry Manilow.

I also remember thinking that there was no way they would approve of me listening to it thanks to Eddie Van Halen's blisteringly memorable guitar solo. Fortunately for me, they already knew who he was because my Aunt had liked the Jackson 5 as a young girl, so it was not hard for them to approve.

Even though the beat and Van Halen's guitar hooked me on the song, it wasn't what immediately hooked me on Michael. To his credit it was his dancing.

I had never seen anyone move the way he could, and when I saw the Thriller video for the first time, I began dancing along.

Not unlike other fans of the early eighties, I had to get the jacket that he wore in Beat It. That jacket was the coolest jacket I've ever had. To this day I wish I hadn't grown out of it.

Did I become a fan because I lived in an area of the world that embraced him on a large scale, he danced well, or because his music was awesome? No. It was more than that, something unseen.

In fact, I did not learn how he had influenced me until we moved back to the United States and I heard another boy making fun of him. I became upset and defended my hero and it was then that I learned that there is a bad side to being famous...everyone is a critic.

In my opinion, Michael Jackson was misunderstood and by the time I arrived in the US in 1985, he was already surrounded by scandal and rumor. For the next twenty four years I defended him as more rumors, lies and eventually lawsuits became the stigma that followed the seemingly infamous Michael Jackson. It was here that I related to him most.

As a young boy I had often felt misunderstood and was often teased for various reasons. I saw in Michael an example of how to handle oneself in the face of bullies and unwanted remarks.

It was his strength to carry on without fear and be the person he wanted to be that inspired me to eventually shrug off the jokes and jibes that were aimed at me. Because of that I will always have a strong admiration and respect for him.

The world and media may claim that his legacy is the music he gave us.Or that he was an incredible and inventive dancer who invented a few trademark moves, but, though it is an incredible legacy to leave behind, his true gift to the world was his love and kindness to others and his desire to help underprivileged children around the globe.

While his music will forever immortalize him, let it be a reminder of the man he was and that we must all remember: "If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change." Man in the Mirror, the Bad album 1987

I thank God for you Michael, your spirit changed me and the rest of the world. Thank you for filling our lives with music and dance.