It is always sad when the world loses major talent. It is magnified by the exposure of their art and lives in endless cycles on airwaves, internet and in some cases radio. I am always reflective when talent passes on. It is a reminder of the fleeting nature of our stay on the planet… but it is also sometimes a walk down your own memory lane.

In truth I have never been a huge Michael Jackson fan. I will not deny that there has been music in his library of many hits that I have enjoyed over the years… but for the most part I lean in other directions and found the artist himself a bit too eccentric for adulation.

But then there is the landscape of a lifetime. I am the same age as Michael and I grew up with him all around me. He is a part of who I am because he is a part of all of us. I cannot and will not deny the feeling of shock and loss today. It is surreal and it is sobering. It is a reminder of the frail nature of human beings and the sense of how little we really know about others, especially those who we learn all about through the media.

What strikes me as most revealing is the knowing that this man was (and will remain) world famous as an artist. There was money, riches… and a legacy of loneliness and naivete. The eccentricities and the troubles of his later life will always be a part of what we know Michael Jackson to be, but in the end it will always be the music that defines him.

But as I watched the endless barrage of clips and tributes today I could not help but to feel the eerie chill whenever the years that marked his life were on the screen. 1958-2009. That is my year of birth. It just felt surreal.

To those who mourn I join you. It is never anything but sad to see this sort of shift in the culture happen. To both Michael Jackson and Farah Fawcett’s families I send my sincere condolences. The world has lost.

For those of us who remain….

Be Happy. Be Well. Be.

I am one of those types that believes he has lived before. More than once. So, considering there was previous life I would need to assume that I have experienced death. Will I recognize it? Is it there to be recognized or will my soul simply leave and this mortal body become the empty shell it began as?

Fascinating. Who knows?

Today I was handed this book hailed as “essential reading for the pre-deceased” and I was sure that it would be a good read for me. Why? Because death fascinates me. I have thought about it endlessly for most of my life. It is on my mind daily in my middle age. I am not afraid of it. Some days I wouldn’t feel it such a bad idea. Trust me… this is not a cry for help. I am not plotting my demise. I just look at the reality of a pretty messed up world and know that I am going to try and do my best to be ready when my time arrives.

Naturally that isn’t always possible. But perhaps that is precisely the point of a book like “The Beginner’s Guide for the Recently Deceased”.

Consider the preface: The Beginner’s Guide for the Recently Deceased is written for the dead. If, however, you are yet to make the transition, we suggest you pour yourself a glass of wine, settle back into a comfortable chair, and let the author take you on a guided tour of the extraordinary.

Damn. Wine? Sometimes it sucks being sober.

Perhaps the point to this blog entry is one of the staples I have written about in the past… and will be sure to write about in the future. Be careful what you wish for. You might notice that I am constantly talking about and wishing for travel. I wonder if this is the travel I could be preparing for? Will I get to Sydney first? Will I make it back to London?

I can’t worry about that. I am convinced I’ve lived in London in at least two of my past lives… who’s to say that I won’t jump back in the next.

The next? And just how many will there be? Is it wise to assume that I will get places I want to go in another life? HELL NO. I actually would far prefer to get back to London as many times as humanly possible while in this one. That’s the plan.

I am looking for change. The book is fascinating and could prove to be fortuitous… but quite frankly, I am not quite ready for that trip yet.

Well now… a particularly heavy entry today, eh? I’ll be back with something lighter…. unless I am suddenly traveling.

Be Happy. Be Well. Be.