What a busy week. I have barely had time to skim through the threads, and no time to
post, but this morning I woke up a bit early, so I do have a few minutes right now.
ETA: Sorry this is so long. (I guess after not posting for a while, I got a little carried away. ). SCROLL ALERT.
I never knew that dhunken had health challenges, but I did know his heart, and it was big and beautiful. He was a sensitive and kind man, and I am going over to donate to Charity Water in his name as so many of you have done. The fact that his life touched so many people in this virtual world is powerful and gives me so much to think about.
I don't "know" many of you, and yet I believe I have a pretty good feel for lots of you as
well, and the things you post, and the manner in which you post them, touch me and influence my life.
I don't "know" Adam personally, and yet I really feel I have pieced together a pretty decent feel for him after two years of reading and listening to everything that has ever been said or written about him combined with two years of watching every public thing he does and every public interaction with people that he makes, LOL.
The Internet increases our spheres of influence exponentially- for artists, for fans hoping to
promote artists, and even for each of us individually.
It has been enlightening having my sister visit me this week. Some talk about Adam has come up, no surprise. Last night she said she had never followed the career of any
entertainer the way that I am following Adam's, and mentioned that it seems so out of character for me that, and although there is nothing wrong with it, it completely surprises her. (And she doesn't know the half of it!
). She is, among other things, a therapist and was asking me if I thought it was partly enmeshed with the playing out of my own son's career. I can see she is somewhat puzzled about the level of my commitment, since I never really got into AI pre-Adam and haven't really explored so much new music in years.
What surprised me is that as we continued to talk, I realized that even my sister notices
how excited I am about music again.
Opening myself up to new music has symbolically
been a floodgate for me of opening myself up to all kinds of new things in life. Even better, it has been revitalizing- a real catalyst for reconnecting my middle aged self with that youthful sense of wonder and discovery that sometimes gets buried as we grow into big responsibilities and life challenges. For that, I will forever be grateful to Adam Lambert. At the same time, Adam himself has reminded me to reach out and take what the world offers, to enjoy the moment, to release the negative and to be generous in giving time, service and recognition to others. He has reminded me that you get back what you give away.
What my sister doesn't understand, and so I express it here because so many of you will
understand, is that all of my "interactions," virtual and otherwise, with Adam Lambert over
the past two years have not only made me love Adam as an artist, but have made me love the man himself.
...Much in the same way that I can say I came to love the spirit of dhunken, and much like I have come to love the personalities and unique qualities of so many of you that post here.
Oh, yeah, and two nights ago, we were watching AI and one of the male contestants. When my sister said she didn't like one contestant's presentation, I suspected that meant outward presentation of orientation, and I started sticking up for his right to be who he was. I was surprised when she cut me off and said, "It isn't about his sexual orientation. It is about the fact that his flirtiness isn't working for me. Adam Lambert is gay, and sometimes flirty when he performs, and he is sexy. This guy just doesn't do it for me."
Sexy IS sexy.
And my very conservative sister, who is always uncomfortable with overt displays of sexuality on stage or in movies, and is the definition of a pearl clutcher, albeit one that I dearly love, apparently thinks that Adam is sexaaaaaay. You have to know her to understand how much this puts a smile on my face.
If Adam can conquer my sister, I do believe his change is gonna come.
Opening myself up to new music has symbolically
