I was struck by the news that Prince had passed away this past Thursday.

I wasn’t even sure whether I should believe it or not because, lets face it, there is some crazy sh*# that goes round on social media.

Then, confirmation arrived and I was deeply saddened.

Why was I sad? I didn’t know him personally, in fact I never even met the man.

Then I started thinking about Glen Frey of the Eagles who passed away in January. That death hit me hard too.

Whitney Houston‘s death was another hit me in the chest sort of death.

Again I ask why? I didn’t know any of them. We didn’t have relationships nor did I move in their circles.

I pondered this for quite some time and as I listened to the tributes to some of the greats who had passed, it hit me….these are the one’s I loved as a kid.

They and others were the ones I would lock myself in my bedroom with when I was happy, sad, disappointed, angry, or any other emotion a teenager experiences.

They were the ones who comforted me, lifted my spirits, and filled my head with hope and inspiration. They brought me and my friends together for good times (remember junior high dances, Homecoming, and prom?). They helped me dance and sing through the rough patches that are the teenage years.

I’m getting older (oy how I hate to even admit it) which means everything and everyone I loved through my childhood are getting older too.

Thank God these people who pulled me through some of the happiest and roughest times of my life left me a huge part of themselves – their music, their words, their wisdom.

Even when they weren’t the best people, they taught me valuable lessons about life.

While there are many (too many to mention here) I’d like to say to the most recent three:

Here’s to you Prince for helping me party like its 1999; and to you Glen Frey for showing me how to take it to the limit; and you Whitney Houston for teaching me I wanna dance with somebody, somebody who loves me.

My childhood may be losing many of its greats, but the music will never die and my heart will forever remember.