2016 The Year of the Dead

2016 The Year of the Dead ©

By Michael Casey

Mohammed Ali died today, it’s all over the news, he was part of my childhood, and part of people’s lives all over the world. He did in fact come to Birmingham and such was the crush at the old Bull Ring that the escalator broke under the weight.

2016 seems to be the year of the dead, famous people are all dying all over the place. It’s sad because through them we remember our own lives, when Prince sang Purple Rain we were doing this or that. When Bowie was dressing like a clown we were going through grammar school, or sitting our finals before we became an MD, or just joined the Navy, now we are a Navy Seal with a guilty secret, we are a Bowie fan. Whatever we are or were it is punctuated by the celebrity whose music or films we were watching.

I used to work at CPNEC Birmingham in a variety of roles, maybe 10, I literally did everything. One day on a quiet weekend Henry Cooper strolled in, actually he was Sir Henry by then. Now whey do I mention him? Because he was the British fighter who knocked Ali on his back, and only because Ali’s glove split did Ali get a break and win the fight. It’s all on Utube somewhere no doubt. So if you like my memory is touched by the eternal memory because I happened to be on reception that day.

Alice Cooper was a guest too on one occasion, so I actually met and talked to him, this was 25 years after his song Schools Out for Summer first hit the charts. So if you like my life was touched again by the eternal memory. I even met Eric Clapton and went to the wrong end of the car, worth twice my house, in an attempt to carry his bag. So I said sorry the wife drives a Skoda, which made Eric laugh. So if you like you and me, ordinary people can be touched by the mega stars of today’s world.

Why do we care when the Stars die? It’s because part of us die too, they are the stitching that holds society together. Of course they are not as important as our mum and dad, and 20 years ago in a matter of weeks I nearly lost both parents, read Padre Pio and Me for details. My point is that celebrities are like our clothes they stop us from being naked, without their gifts enriching our lives we are a little naked, they add something to our lives.

The delivery driver whistles a song or sings along as he drives and comes up the garden path with that parcel, the music helps his day. Music helps all our days, that why music is on the radio everywhere. The parcel may be a few cds of Elvis or the Cure or the latest X factor sensation. It could be your Polo or Vera Wang clothes, it might even by your Beckham perfume, though JP Gautier is my own choice, or even a little Ck.  So it is the products that you like which are the things that make you happy and make you you.

So when the creator of your style, clothes, music, perfume, or even homewares dies you take it personally. Where will you get your stuff again? Alexander McQueen was a great talent and sadly too sensitive for this world so with his death we lost a very sensitive person and an outstanding fashion designer. So we mourn him for what he was and for what the future his future could and would have been. If only his friends were able to save him from his grief, there are lessons to be learnt there.

With Ali we mourn more than a fighter, we mourn a multifaceted man, Ali lifted spirits worldwide, he had the gift to do that.  So many famous people lift us up by their gifts, music or words or creations in art and fashion. So they are worthy of tears because their lives enriched ours.

But the obvious thing to remember is that we too, all of us can do the same, we won’t touch millions, I’m not naïve enough to think millions will one day read and be touched by my words, but each and every-one of us can reach out and touch one person at a time and change their life, or even save their life. So reach out and touch today and together we’ll be remembered when we die because we loved one person at a time.