I sat on the couch for more than two hours last night with my tween daughter, both of us equally stunned by the magnitude of the loss and the news coverage of the death of Michael Jackson.  It was a first for her... seeing someone so famous and so well-loved so publicly mourned and so widely talked about.  For me, it was a reminder of losses past like Elvis Presley and Princess Diana.  Ironically, she is the same age now that I was when Elvis died.  Even more ironically, I have very little recollection of Elvis' death other than hearing my parents speak of it.  My daughter not only watched the news on TV, but was also online with me looking at various web sites and trying to watch the Tweet stream on Twitter.  We talked of all the magazine and newspaper coverage to come.  She remarked, "this is an amazing time to be alive, mommy."  I couldn't agree more.  Which makes it so tragic that the "king of pop" isn't around anymore.

Throughout the night I had many opportunities to share stories and life lessons.  We talked about the barriers Micheal Jackson broke between music genres, dance styles, generations and races.  I tried my best to describe a time before MTV and the Internet.  I told her I used to have to go to the record store to look at the album covers to see what the artists looked like that were played on the radio.  If you couldn't afford concert tickets (which i couldn't) and your parents wouldn't allow Rolling Stone or other magazines in the house (mine wouldn't) you really didn't have an understanding of who the artists were.  MTV changed that.  Now we could see them perform.  And that is what most of them did at first.  Michael Jackson was the first to bring storytelling, costuming, choreography and music together in a mini-movie format that would forever change the way we watched music videos.  I could see it starting to sink in with her how significant an artist he was and why so many felt such a significant loss at his passing.

Unfortunately, we also had to talk about the allegations of child abuse and sexual misconduct, multiple marriages and morphing skin tone and facial features.  I explained how much of who Michael Jackson was as an adult was the result of how we was raised as a child, his early success and the media attention and in turn public pressure that ensued.  But I was quick to point out it isn't what happens to you in life, it is what you do about it.  Michael had many opportunities to choose a different path. Sometimes he did.  Sometimes he didn't.  Sometimes we couldn't be sure what he had choosen vs. what the media reported. 

in the end though, his path led to where all paths lead.  And we talked about the ineveitability of death for everyone.  She talked about the unexpected loss of her grandmother just a few months ago and said she still wakes up sometimes and can't believe she's gone.  She said people would feel that way about Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett and Ed McMahon as well.  I was proud of her for remembering them all.  As should we.