Nostalgia, Pt. 32

As family and friends prepare to say their final good-byes to Michael Jackson, today we remember the late King of Pop.

Yes, we’ve been remembering him every single day ever since we heard the news of his untimely death late last month, but today’s different.

Today’s final.

We remember MJ with a little more respect today, and as the Rev. Al Sharpton said we should this morning on the Today show, with a little more attention paid to the legacy of his work as one of the world’s most iconic entertainers.

Michael Jackson never was a visceral experience for me.

I listened and danced to “Thriller” at parties, and just FYI, I never dared recreate his moves in the video.

My older sisters used to needle me with a version of “Beat It” they’d reworked just for me.

And I never saw him perform live, although I once came close when he toured the world in support of his HIStory, a show that would not go on and make it to South America because of one his many legal troubles in the ’90s. I remember my mom went to return the tickets to this department store, and came back home with a new washer and dryer and a new sofa. “It was either that or store credit,” she told my dad, who was not amused.

The MJ I knew best wasn’t the headline-maker of “Bad,” “Billie Jean,” “Smooth Criminal,” or “The Way You Make Me Feel.” Sadly, I came to know him as the embattled headline-grabber who, on rare occasion, put out a good song like “Black or White,” or “Scream,” his duet with his sister Janet.

Once upon a time, at the height of his popularity, he was the King of Pop. Jackson reached across borders, bridged differences between people, and, indeed, made billions of people feel like one. He had such singular power. He cared about us, and we really did care about him.

Until the very day end, ever the consummate entertainer, Michael Jackson was good for a memory, for a laugh (be it well-intentioned or mean-spirited), so let’s let today mean something good.

In MJ’s words, let today be a day when “we stand together all around the world joined in a common purpose to remake the planet into a haven of joy and understanding and goodness”:



I think Michael Jackson truly wanted to make this world a better place. As he once again brings billions together, I can only hope we can all remember we can heal the world.

It’s what he would’ve wanted.

Long live the King!

Update 1: I thought Jennifer Hudson performing “Will You Be There” (the Free Willy song!) was fantastic.

Update 2: Seeing MJ’s daughter Paris address the crowd at the Staples Center moved me: