I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing.

This weekend has been one of those that will forever be engraved on my memory. I will always remember the day Whitney Houston died and where I was.  The following people as they passed through the veil will be just regular people but they had a big impact on my life. They are not necessarily heroes or someone to look up to but none the less they are a part of my life. 

When I was a young girl probably 4 or 5, John F Kennedy was killed as he rode in a car in Dallas Texas. I remember it very well. I remember watching his wife Jackie and her two very young children walk behind the horse drawn casket. I was standing in front of the black and white TV watching and even though I was very young I felt so so so sad. I remember John Juniors little jacket and his hand in his mothers. We visited the Book Depository several years ago and I was overwhelmed at what had happened there. I stared out the window and was transported back to the sad time in history. When I was about 10 or 12 I read the Warren Commission report. Big reading for a young girl. 

I was also traumatized by the death of John Junior when he went down in his plane. I loved following him in the news and magazines. Always handsome and successful. I was sitting in the Ray's gas station waiting for my car to be washed when I heard it on the TV.

John Lennon! He wanted world peace. He died a violent death. It was such a sad day. My children were little and I was sad they would not know him alive. 

I was watching the TV as I sat on the floor folding laundry. I was watching the space shuttle launch when suddenly something was very wrong. I was also watching the morning the second shuttle exploded on reentry just a couple of years ago. It was a lazy Saturday morning. David Bloom was the reporter. 

I was also saddened the day David Bloom died while covering the war in Iraq. I had told Jeff that it was odd that he was not on the air one Sunday morning because I looked forward to seeing him every day. He had just died of a DVT from being cooped up in a tank for too long. 

Nobody will forget the day of 9/11. I was headed to the INEL for a tour with emergency directors. We all shared cell phone updates. Smart phones did not exist yet. We were turned around and sent back from the INEL. It was a tragic day for the world. One thing I remember was all of the TV stations cancelled their shows that night. I am so sorry for those who lost loved ones. I work with someone who lost her husband during 9/11 and I am reminded that life can be so quickly changed by evil. We need to cherish every day. 

I was up very early one morning with Rachel in California. It was not a great day to begin with. We watched the TV reports of John Ritter's unexpected death for hours as we waited in a miserable hospital waiting area. June Carter Cash passed away that day also. 

Sitting in a Hotel atrium in Santiago Dominican Republic we heard the news that Michael Jackson was being rushed to the hospital and they were doing CPR on him. Michael had many challenges in his life. I loved his music and his entertainment. When my kids were little we were going to earn money to go see him in concert by worming lawns. We never did any worming but I loved to listen to him as I did the dishes and housework after the kids went to bed. 

Last month as we were boarding a plane in LA a pretty lady got on our plane. She was Judith Hill, one of his back up singers. She sang with Michael in "This Is It" and at his memorial service. I wish now I had talked to her. 

Just a funny note here. I recently had my hair done a little darker than usual. I passed the mirror and thought, "I look like Michael Jackson". OK I am a little crazy, and no I did not do any cosmetic surgery, it was just the hair. 

Not long ago I stayed up all night watching the tsunami as it destroyed Japan. It was a long night. They reported that it was going to hit the California coast. That is where Rachel lives. I tried to call her for hours. I was pretty upset that she was going to be in trouble. She just had her phone off. 

Yesterday we saw on the news that Whitney Houston had died unexpectedly. So many memories with Whitney. She was so beautiful and sang as nobody else could. I am sure most of us secretly have tried to sing like her when nobody else is around to hear the miserable attempt. Leslie was one of her biggest fans. She watched her every chance she got. I am sad that Whitney had such a hard time in life. I believe that she had a good heart. Her songs will be with me forever, they are beautiful. 

If I should stay,
I would only be in your way.
So I'll go, but I know
I'll think of you ev'ry step of the way.

And I will always love you.
I will always love you.
You, my darling you. Hmm.

Bittersweet memories
that is all I'm taking with me.
So, goodbye. Please, don't cry.
We both know I'm not what you, you need.

And I will always love you.
I will always love you.

I hope life treats you kind
And I hope you have all you've dreamed of.
And I wish to you, joy and happiness.
But above all this, I wish you love.

And I will always love you.
I will always love you.
I will always love you.
I will always love you.
I will always love you.
I, I will always love you.

You, darling, I love you.
Ooh, I'll always, I'll always love you. 

In this life people will come and go. They will touch us in unknown ways for good or bad. Most will have a positive  influence on us. I appreciate the good each of the above people have contributed to my life. I hope that they have found peace in the next world where they now reside.