Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Peace, Love and John Lennon

I remember being a skinny kid in my awkward stage, dancing around the tiny living room of our suburban townhome.  My mom, my sisters and I would sing along to "Stand by Me", "Beautiful Boy" and "Instant Karma" by John Lennon.  I have a whole slew of childhood memories I'd love to forget but these are the ones I treasure.  I loved this time with them enjoying music, feeling free.   I still remember Friday nights when we'd go out for pizza and play the juke box.  We'd slide our dollars in and fight over which songs we'd play.  The one artist we could always agree on was John Lennon.  

At a young age my mom shared the story of how he died and where she was when she heard the news.  Although many years after his death, I was saddened that this man that made such beautiful music was killed.  Today marks 30 years since that very day.  

I've always felt a strong connection to his lyrics and his messages of peace and truth.  I admire him for his honesty, his activism and his artistry.  I'd like to pay tribute to a man that inspired and moved me since childhood.  A man that spoke his truth like we all should speak our own.  





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6 comments:

  1. God, I love him! Such a wonderful man. My favorite Beatle <3

    BTW I'm stealing the pic! lol :)

    -your love child, haha
    xoxo

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  2. Your new masthead photo is beautiful, Kate.

    So I was a college freshman in 1980 and had a roommate who I had very little in common with. We rarely talked but the day John Lennon died, she tacked the lyrics to "Imagine" to our dorm door and we both had a long talk and a good cry and we've been friends ever since.

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  3. Beautiful Boy.

    oh man.

    That song.

    I just love it.

    Great post.

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  4. I'm old enough to actually remember when he was killed. I was too young to understand why it was such a big deal, but I knew that it was. Love, love, love his music and what he stood for!

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  5. I grew up listening to the Beatles and wakling to school past the Dakota where he lived and was killed, and where Yoko still lived.

    My fondest John Lennon memory is from my semester living in Italy. I was there on 9/11/01 and the Italian MTV station played "Imagine" over and over - the video mixed with images of the towers collapsing. For a New Yorker unable to comprehend what had just happened at home, this was exactly what I needed.

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  6. This is so beautifully written Kate. I remember that day also. Also at my surprise birthday party at 13 when we played Beatles albums backwards because it said 'I Buried Paul'. It was scary because we actually thought we heard it, and to loose a Beatle even back then was a sad thing.

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