Gil Scott Heron 4.1.49 - 5.27.11

Rest In Peace, my friend.


xoxx

Off to sleep.

It's a really strange thing to put your cat "to sleep".

A few weeks ago Asha The Cat took a turn for the worse. We brought her to the vet on a Friday morning and Monday afternoon I kissed her little ears goodbye forever. The days in between were spent with teary eyes as I grew used to the idea of saying goodbye.

I was fortunate enough to have a few hours with her at home before I let her go, and I was also fortunate to be there when she left. I rubbed her little ears and whispered how good she was and within seconds she was gone.

I have written this post so many times in the past few weeks, but it never was quite right enough to publish. This is why this page has been stagnant for over a month. It's hard not to write about all the funny characteristics and habits she had. It's hard not to write in detail what those last hours at home with her entailed. But I've written enough, talked enough. The rest is for me to keep close to my heart, a heart that will always skip a beat at the sight of any gray cat in memoriam of sweet, sweet Asha.

Bright Light

As humans, we are constantly meeting new people. Some are memorable and some are not. Some stay in our lives, others criss cross paths with us from time to time, and some we never see again.

In first grade I went to North Star Community School in Minneapolis. About one third of my first grade class went on to the Intermediate elementary school, Junior High & High School together. It's a funny thing to be educated in the largest school district in the state of Minnesota and have such an intimate community of classmates.

Of this group of classmates most are my friends on Facebook. We criss cross through each other's lives on the internet, chiming in on photo postings of children, new houses and vacations. We offer support to one another through wall posts & reactions to FB status. Sometimes I laugh at this, but mostly I am grateful to be in some sort of contact with people who I care for very much but likely wouldn't ever see with the exception of class reunions.

This weekend I logged into to Facebook and read that a member of this group of classmates them had been killed the night before.

"What?!"

I read on and sadly, it was true.

Dontae Johnson was a kid who had the most infectious personality and smile. He was kindhearted and as a classmate, was someone you felt lucky to have an assigned seat next to. As we grew older and became our own people, Dontae never stopped saying hello or asking how things were - and he really wanted to know. That's just the way Dontae Johnson was and always with a smile.

I think the last time I saw Dontae was at my High School ten year reunion, and before that, well it had probably been about ten years. I was excited to have recently encountered him on Facebook and excitedly looked over the photos he posted of his life: adorable kids, beautiful wife and still sporting that amazing smile. We had criss crossed each other's lives again. It was nice.

It is surreal to be writing this and I have been wrestling with the idea of writing something about this for a few days. He wasn't my best friend, or a friend I spoke with on a regular basis. But he was a friend and he had this uncanny ability to make every person he said hello to or even flashed his famous smile to feel like they were quite remarkable.

I am a crier. I cry so many times everyday thinking about this tragedy. Mostly I think about his children and his wife, his parents & siblings, the immeasurable loss they are suffering and the time they have ahead. Facebook is flooded with comments of grief, photographs & words of comfort to his family. The passing of this life was too soon and seems unfair.

And again, I cry.

There are so many crying for Dontae and his family right now. He was such a bright shining star with so much light left. I am heartbroken that he has gone. Dontae Johnson touched so many with his light and smile, even though we can't see him, he will continue to shine down light and smiles to all of us forever.

xoxx

Michael Jackson 1958 - 2009

The Moon Walk. White Gloves. The Best Dance Songs Ever: Beat It, P.Y.T., Don't Stop..., among so many more. The epic videos. The Jackson Five. The sunglasses & zipper Jacket. And of course the trademark appearance he sported in his prime.



This is my favorite way to remember him.

This was the era in which I was his biggest fan. My grandmother worried about her 5 year old granddaughter's dream of marrying The King of Pop, but in the end the only Michael Jackson t-shirt I had was a gift from her. I guess he won her over too.

xoxx

Malalai Kakar 1967 - 2008

Yesterday morning, Malalai Kakar was assassinated* in front of her home as her son prepared to drive her to work. She was a remarkable woman. The highest ranking woman in a police force in Afghanistan, she headed the Crimes Against Women unit in Kandahar and was mother to six children. She was the the first woman to rejoin the police force after the Taleban were ousted in 2001, she had previously joined the police force in 1981 following the likes of her father and brother.

I read an article about Malalai Kakar sometime last year in Mother Jones magazine. The striking photo above is of her and was initially what drew me into the article. As I read I was struck by her perseverance, humility & strength; she inspired me.

I heard news of her death tonight on the radio as I drove home. I was saddened and immediately thought of the women in Afghanistan, Malalai Kakar's community of Kandahar, her children and their grief for her.

I arrived home and googled her name. The bulk of articles that came up were recounting her assassination, but there were a handful that were written long before and told tales of her advocation for Afghani women illustrating her magnificent character. (This BBC article is my favorite.)

Tonight let us keep her in our thoughts and grieve her and the loss her children and community will endure in the wake of her death.

xoxx

*Her assassination has been claimed by the Taleban & is part of an alleged campaign to eliminate all women in authoritative & powerful positions in Afghanistan.