mama always told me, be careful who you love...

when i heard that michael jackson had passed away on thursday afternoon, i couldn't believe it--it didn't register right away. but when i woke up friday, and turned on the morning news programs to find intense, sometimes-creepy media coverage (though i am a journalist by trade and am sympathetic to the need to provide comprehensive coverage, i do not enjoy seeing covered bodies being wheeled anywhere on a stretcher), it hit me. and i felt so, so deeply sad.

anna at door sixteen wrote a great post about mj on friday night, and i echo her sentiments. jackson was one of the few artists who could get me to drop everything and just dance. he was our generation's elvis; he was the soundtrack to many of our childhoods. when the iconic, industry-altering music video for thriller came out, my dad taped it and kept it on vhs--as recently as five or six years ago, he busted it out and we had an impromptu family dance party. i will always think of him as an amazing artist--but even more importantly, a compassionate, misunderstood human being--who had the ability to bring my family and friends together and make us dance.

{ video via cottage of stone }