Call For Love Devotion - July 9: What Would Michael Do?

I have been so impressed with all the devotions that have been placed here on Call For Love and I thank each and every contributor to this effort to remain grounded while we soar into spiritual realms that many of us never knew we were capable of achieving.

Some topics for upcoming weeks have been suggested. The one I have gravitated most towards is: What Would Michael Do? In my past experiences with Michael Joseph Jackson, I have learned to pay attention to those ‘gravitational’ pulls towards ideas for further investigation or books to be read or causes to which to donate. In these spiritual leadings, I have never been disappointed. That remains true in the decade I like to call ‘my Michael Phase’ (1992-2002), in the two years since he ascended (a time when I ‘fell again’ and continue to fall afresh every day) … and for the foreseeable future.

The words were spoken by Dr. Patrick Treacy on the anniversary of The Day The Earth Stood Still at the Gardner Street Elementary Michael Jackson Auditorium as the conclusion to his speech in celebration of his friend. It’s a question many of us are grappling with on a weekly … or daily … or hourly … basis.

I think Michael, himself, answered the question for us in This Is It as well as in almost every award acceptance speech he delivered, song he sang, short film he envisioned and then made into reality, performance he danced and book he wrote. I don’t think the answer will come as a surprise to anyone. What would Michael do? He would, very simply:

LOVE!

For those of you who know me, this devotion is going to be very brief (an almost unheard of occurrence in my writings … LOL!) It consists of one word. How’s that for brief?

I will offer no proof of that statement. You are all aware of his life and the many instances he spoke that word … with his words, with his actions, with his songs, with his performances.

What I am going to ask you all to do is take a few moments today and close your eyes. Shut out the world clamoring for your attention. Turn off the faucets of chatter that flood your minds in a never-ceasing stream of consciousness.

Now, take your favorite audio clip of Michael Jackson from any stage he ever graced and hear his voice yelling, “I love YOU!” Please place that audio clip in your mind! Hear it! Feel it! BE IT! Sit quietly for a few minutes in that all-encompassing love. Feel it again … hear it again … be it again … just let his beautiful spirit wash you squeaky clean!

I can’t improve on that feeling. Sorry!

by Jan Carlson
Copyright (c) 2011

Call For Love Devotion - July 8: Caring For Our Children

I once heard an old woman lament "There ain't a man alive over 12 years old." I didn't believe her.

As I've grown older, I get it now. She was right. The ages between birth-12 are so critical to our wholeness that often if there's a trauma or an abuse or lack to that stage, no matter the age of the grown up, people still try to heal and fulfill their inner child.

I know that love and acceptance affect a child's self-esteem. When I study Michael's life and listen to his workds, he wanted what a child had a right to want: a father's love. He wanted to please his father and have his father be proud of him. He wanted to be loved as his father's son. As "Michael"... not as a commodity. Someone whos love was not dependent on how perfectly you performed.

No matter how altruistic our desires may be to have our child succeed, it needs to be rooted in what THEIR purpose is, not our own unfulfilled needs or our desire to see our children reflecting on us.

I saw an intesting headline on a financial magazine: How to make your child a millionaire. Really? Not saying it's a bad goal, but.... how about making them feel like a million bucks?

Michael's father drove him and his brothers to succeed. But what Michael still longed for at the end of the day was the elusive love of his father. That hole was never filled. He only had a manager, a trainer, but not someone he knew as "Dad".

On the contrary, my father DISMISSED every dream I had and KEPT me from pursuing and extraordinary goals and just live a mediocre life, never reaching for the stars. He wanted me to have "security". A J-O-B. And that's exactly what I have.

And all I have is a long list of dreams I wish I'd attempted. I was convinced into thinking that I wasn't good enough to win... not as an entertainer, or even a photopgraher. One day I was staring at one of my cousins who has been a stunning beauty since birth. One day I suggested that they give modeling a chance. "No, no...." said the father. "I wouldn't want her to get there and get hur when she fails." I thought to myself... 'what makes you automatically think that she'll FAIL?? What if she succeeds??'

I am reminded that succeeding and failing are part of life. Living in the middle is a grey existence. Pres. Teddy Roosevelt said it best here: "It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

"Citizenship in a Republic,"
Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

Love your children and ask God what they're supposed to be and how you can facilitate them in their dreams. One daunting notion that came up after Michael's passing was that they might become vulnerable to being exploited by Joseph who might see them as 'The Jackson 3'. Michael's words came clear and strong for his family: "They're not us" meaning the Jackson 5. He also said "They're not the new me." They are themselves.... Prince. Paris. Blanket.

There should be no expectation of the children to be copies of the parent. I see preachers do it, teachers do it, athletes do it. They place expectations on their kids to be just like them.

Love your children for who they are. There's a heartfelt song about this by JJ Heller called "What Love Really Means". See if you hear Michael singing this:

He cries in the corner where nobody sees
He’s the kid with the story no one would believe
He prays every night “Dear God won’t you please...
Could you send someone here who will love me?”

Who will love me for me?
Not for what I have done or what I will become
Who will love me for me?
‘Cause nobody has shown me what love
What love really means, what love really means

You know, I think of the kids in orphanages feeling lonely and abandonned and unloved who could sing that song. Like a puppy in a shelter longing to be adopted. But this same emotion is not extreme cases only -- we ALL carry this need.

Sometimes even if we love a child from our hearts, we don't know how to show it. There's a guide for showing love to children and teens in ways that truly get the message received. It's called 5 Love Languages. They are: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch. Remember that every child is different. What works for one child may not work for another. So how do you find out what means "love" to your child?

1. Observe how your child expresses love to you.
2. Observe how your child expresses love to others
3. Listen to what your child requests most often
4. Notice what your child most frequently complains about.
5. Give your child a choice between two love language options and see what they choose.

Start speaking their 'language'.

In light of this week being the 2 year marker of Michael's memorial, I found a poignant poem from Maya Angelou that is most apt for the theme of loving our children. I hear Michael's song "Have you Seen My Childhood" woven in its words:

“Go and Hug Your Michael Today”
By Maya Angelou

Yesterday I cried watching the Michael Jackson memorial. I cried for a little
black boy who felt the world didn’t understand him. I cried for a little black
boy who spent his adulthood chasing his childhood. And I thought about all the
young black boys out there who may too feel that the world doesn’t understand
them. The ones who feel that the world does not understand their baggy jeans,
their swagger, their music, their anger, their struggles, their fears or the
chip on their shoulder. I worry that my son, may too, one day will feel lonely
in a wide, wide world.

I cried for the young children of all colors who may live their life feeling
like a misfit, feeling like no one understands their perspective, or their soul.
What a burden to carry.

As a mother, I cried for Katherine Jackson because no mother should ever bury a child. Period. And I think about all the pain, tears and sleepless nights that
she must have endured seeing her baby boy in inner pain, seeing him struggle
with his self-esteem, and his insecurities and to know he often felt unloved
even while the world loved him deeply. How does it feel to think that the
unconditional love we give as mothers just isn’t enough to make our children
feel whole? I wonder if she still suffers thinking, “what more could I have
done?” Even moms of music legends aren’t immune to mommy guilt, I suppose.

When Rev. Al Sharpton (“who always delivers one” awesome “funeral speech”) said to Michael’s children, “Your daddy was not strange…It was strange what your Daddy had to deal with,” I thought of all the “strange” things of the world that my children will have to deal with. Better yet, the things I hope they won’t
ever have to deal with anymore.

And as a mother raising a young black boy, I feel recommitted and yet a little
confused as to how to make sure my son is sure enough within himself to take on the world. Especially a “strange” one. To love himself enough to know that even when the world doesn’t understand you, tries to force you into its mold or
treats you unkindly, you are still beautiful, strong and Black. How do I do
that?

Today, I am taking back “childhood” as an inalienable right for every brown
little one. In a world, that makes children into booty-shaking, mini-adults long
before their time, I’m reclaiming the playful, innocent, run-around-outside,
childhood as the key ingredient in raising confident adults. Second, I will not rest until my little black boy, MY Michael, knows that his broad nose is beautiful, his chocolately brown skin is beautiful, and his thick hair is beautiful.

And nothing or no one can ever take that away from him.

“Now aint we bad? And ain’t we black? And ain’t we fine? -Maya Angelou

Today I pray for Prince, for Paris, and for Blanket. That they will always know that they are deeply loved and cherished for who they are. For themselves. Loved because they're here. With a purpose and a dream. May we encourage them in their dreams. They are to be loved for who they are, and not what they will become. Not to force someone else's expectations on them, but to give them the freedom to become who they are meant to be...not just to see them as 'Michael Jackson's kids'.

Prince, Paris, Blanket... we love you for you.

by Rita Bosico, M.Div., M.A.
Copyright (c) 2011

What Love Really Means
http://youtu.be/EqWf-XehllA

Have you seen my childhood. Michael Jackson described the song "Have You Seen My Childhood" as the most intimately personal and autobiographical of his career.
http://youtu.be/lFAmwsiz8Ls

Go and Hug Your Michael Today
http://elev8.com/world/better-​living-world/cherylhudson/maya​-angelou-says-go-and-hug-your-​michael-today/

The Five Love Languages of Children
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v​=ktMP8Ij3BIc

The Five Love Languages of Teenagers
http://youtu.be/iFl68IdjN4Q

Call For Love Devotion - July 7: Caring For Our Children

When I was very young - 7 or 8 years old I made my first scrapbook of my ideal husband: men who really loved children, so I cut out pictures, advertisements mostly, of a father looking adoringly at his newborn baby, or fathers playing and horsing around with their children. I wanted a man who really, truly loved children as much as I did and who wanted to have lots of children, like I did. Fate is strange sometimes and life can turn out entirely differently than you hoped for, but it's always for a good reason, that I believe in with all my heart. So, while I didn't become a mother or find the man I had been looking for, I gave my love to the children I babysat for during many years.

When I babysat for many children, I would read them bedtime stories from their favorite books, over and over again, no matter how often they wanted to hear that same story, and fall asleep in that comforting realization of familiarity. Often though, I would just as easily make up a story, asking the child what is was they wanted to hear a story about. The story would be born from the precipes of my mind, letting my imagination run wild, and a new story would unfold each time, meanwhile tired heads leaning on my arms, sucking their thumb and nearly dozing off....

Once I babysat for two children, during a couple of months, every saturday. The girl always wanted to "play house" and her younger brother wanted to play with his cars. Both of their parents were physicians, who were very busy, which didn't leave much time for the children. So when I arrived, they outdid each other in trying to tell me their stories, talking louder and quicker to gain attention. As a result the boy had developed a stutter. When they both, in their excitement, tried to tell me their stories at the same time I said "Listen up guys, i want to hear each of your stories, so why don't we tell our stories taking turns. When Allison talks, Neil and I will listen, and when Neil talks Allison and I will listen, okay?' Each child could then take all the time he/she needed for their own stories, and within months the boys stutter was gone.

Another time, fast forward to years later, I was babysitting my oldest nephew, who was then only 3 months old. His mom, my sister-in-law, kissed him goodbye and off they went, his parents. My nephew started to cry from that moment on, and no matter what I tried; a bottle, a clean diaper, strolling around, singing softly, getting him to burp, nothing worked. I was getting desperate myself and felt tears of frustration welling up. What to do? Then I had an idea: I put him in his parents bed, on his mothers side and for some reason I cannot explain I drew circles with my finger in his tiny hand. Within 5 minutes he fell sound asleep. When his parents got home I told them what I had done and finally came up with. My sister-in-law looked at me and then exclaimed "but, how is that possible? You did the exact same thing as I do", but she had forgotten to tell me about, just in case.

What is the point in these shared anecdotes?

When we harbor and cherish our childlike qualities, that inner child that lives inside us, we can easily connect with the children around us, and react from the heart to what is needed in that moment. Giving a child the confidence to be what they want to be, to be cherished, valued and loved as they are, is a great gift, together with boundaries: rules that are to be abided by, thus giving a sense of security, being protected and cared for.

Even now, I love to make a funny face to a crying child in the supermarket, giving it some attention, which surprises it so, that the child forgets to cry. To be able to make that difference, gives me joy. Being one with children, seeing the world through their eyes is so endearing and refreshing!!

by Elmira van Galen
Copyright (c) 2011

Call For Love Devotion - July 6: Caring For Our Children

June 21, summer solstice, longest day of the year. To me, always a special day, but this one was extra special to me. We had spent the day at Neverland. It had been our dream, Mimi's and mine, to take a copy of our book to the gates of Neverland. We had intended to do it on Michael's birthday in 2010. Due to many unforeseen circumstances, we had been delayed until now. On this special day, I sat and read Ever After on a rock, and left it, with notes to Michael from Mimi and me, tucked behind a vine on the wall by the gate. It had been a perfect day. We had cried and laughed. Met people from China, Denmark, and one online friend who lives in Solvang, who showed us around the town, and is the guardian of the gate when all of us have to be at home in our own countries and towns.

I felt as though love was flowing out of the ground at Neverland. It was in the air. In my mind's eye I could see a fountain of love rising from inside Neverland and flowing out to permeate the air for miles around. At one point I was overwhelmed with the desperate need to do more for Michael, to honor him and serve him. Nothing seemed to be enough to give back for what he has done for me.

We were driving home to Mimi's house, an hour and an half away. I was sitting in the back seat and leaning forward to tell a story of a dream that I had in the summer of 2009, just after Michael was gone, at a time when I was learning about him and who he really was. (This dream is here on my blog in an earlier post.) We did not have any music on, as the IPOD was dead and was being charged up. Right in the middle of my story of my dream, a song started playing by itself. It was a song I had never heard before and Michael's angelic voice was singing "I have this dream. Which I believe. We are children of a distant family. Every child that is born, needs to believe that he belongs. I have this dream."

I could not believe my ears. It was the most beautiful song I had every heard, and it was about his dream for children, which was exactly what my dream had been about. Tears poured down my cheeks, I was vibrating all over, and my heart felt as though it was opening again, as it had two years ago when I had first been struck by Michael's love. It seemed to be an answer to the plea I had made earlier, telling me that Michael's dream and mine are in line, and I am doing what he wants me to do.

During the remainder of the week in California, I Have This Dream came up on our random selection numerous times. It was the song that was playing as we drove out of the gates of Forest Lawn for the last time, and headed for the airport to come home.

At home once again, the song is still haunting me, and I tried to find the lyrics online. The words I found were different than the ones I had heard. They express a beautiful sentiment.

some people say
I live in a fantasy
because I see the world
differently
visions come to me
in my sleep
I closed my eyes
to see what God is showing me

close your eyes
and imagine with me
see the wonder
in every living thing
if we can live
the way it is in my dreams
love will take us to a place where
god can be seen

this is my dream

I have this dream
this i believe
the world a place for all humanity
if we could take love to it's highest level
more than the world has ever seen
I have this dream

let's put Gods love on display
angel of love come my way
it's really up to you and me
one world together in harmony

in my dream I see heaven
and the face of the one perfect being
I see people turning into angels
and God giving them their wings

I have this dream
this I believe
the world's a place
for all humanity

if we could take love
to it's highest level
more than the world has ever seen
I have this dream

Michael, my love, my inspiration, my maestro, I promise that I will do my best to see your dreams come true. I will use any abilities I have, to help to teach a new generation about you, your message, and your love. And every child that comes into my life, will know that he belongs. I share your dream.

by Brenda Jenkyns
Copyright (c) 2011

Call For Love Devotion - July 4: If We Only Just Listen

The Plea

Parents take heart
Don’t lose hope
You can make a new start
Love and kindness are a part of God's dream
for a brighter tomorrow
You have the power to make things right
The children need your help
Simply be your very best selves
The truth of what you were meant to be
Remember your childhood, innocent and bright
Return to your heart, stay in the light
And keep singing your beautiful love song

We must admit where we’ve been wrong
We’ve lost sight of what’s right
We’ve all been fooled
We don’t know what we want, we only think we do
That’s why we need children to show us the way
To help us remember
Guide us back to our hearts
To that place and time before our childhoods went astray

This is the time to bury our pride
Pay attention to God’s littlest angels
They have much to teach us
In their innocence, they are wise
Their little souls are closest to God
Their light is still shining brightly
If we crush it now, their spirits will die
We can’t allow this to be!

Please don’t belittle, ridicule or strike
Good discipline is not about fear
They deserve our respect
So they won’t run and hide or choose violence
When the schoolyard bully comes ‘round to jeer
This world needs their love
Their future is in our hands

Remember this…
Pay attention to their souls
God’s wisdom is in them
If we only just listen

The Promise

Children take heart
Don’t lose hope
We can make a new start
Love and kindness are a part of God's dream
for a brighter tomorrow
We have the power to make things right
But we need your help
Simply be your beautiful selves
The truth of what you were meant to be
Innocent and bright, happy and whole
Stay in the light
And keep singing your playful melody

Please, please don’t hide your light because of us
We admit where we’ve been wrong
We’ve lost sight of what’s right
We’ve all been fooled
We don’t know what we want, we only think we do
That’s why we need you to show us the way
Help us remember
Guide us back to our hearts
To that place and time before our childhoods went astray

You are God’s littlest angels
You have much to teach us
In your innocence, you are wise
Your little souls are closest to God
Your light is still shining brightly
If we crush it now, your spirits will die
We won’t allow this to be!

We promise not to belittle, ridicule or strike
Our discipline will not instill fear
You deserve our respect
So you won’t run and hide or choose violence
When the schoolyard bully comes ‘round to jeer
This world needs your love
Your future is in our hands

We will remember this…
To pay attention to your souls
God’s wisdom is in them
If we only just listen

01/01/11
Copyright © 2011 by Charlene Burgess

"Storyteller" by David Nordahl

Call For Love Devotion - July 3: Living the Legacy

They all seem so mundane. Separating the clear glass from the colored glass, and both from the metal. Taking the garbage out to the compost pile, to add to my husband’s “chip and shred” pile. Stacking the old newspapers carefully for recycling. Picking up the stray piece of litter on the parking lot. Things we do every day, to help protect the planet.
In 1997 I bought a new car when I completed my education, as a gift to myself. I drove that car until just last year when I traded it in on a hybrid car. It feels so good to know I am using so much less gas.
There is so much to Michael’s legacy, that it’s hard to select just one aspect. But I am particularly partial to caring for the planet. I may not live IN the trees, but I sure don’t want to live without them, either. When we were searching for our present home, I told the real estate lady that the house had to have trees. I wouldn’t even look at a house if there were not enough trees in the yard: why inconvenience the present owner when I knew that, no matter what the inside of the house looked like, if there weren’t trees, I really wasn’t interested?

I knew our present house was just right when I saw the trees. The lovely lilac bush on the far side of the house sealed the deal for me. I grieved for days when a huge tree living much too near the house had to be taken down, because its roots were attempting to grow into the basement. Our back yard is full of trees, which means it is also full of birds and squirrels. I recently purchased an elaborate bird feeding system, which is installed outside the window of the room where I work. We provide water and all kinds of food for the birds, and they honor us with their presence. Of course, this means also providing food for the squirrels, because otherwise they go after the bird food…once they even knocked down the suet holder and dragged it across the yard after taking the suet from it.

I rescued plants from the yard where I had grown up. There was a beautiful antique pink rosebush that spreads everywhere. I trimmed some branches and brought them to my present home. Mom would always say, Just stick them in the dirt! So I did. That rosebush is now much taller than me, and each May it blesses us with beautiful, fragrant, pink roses. In fact, I planted it near a fence (to cover the fence!) and our neighbors enjoy the roses too.
We rescued Day Lilies, Iris, and many other plants. We started grapevines from vines that originally had been grown by my grandfather. We may not be expert gardeners, but we enjoy watching all the plants grow, bear fruit or flowers, and die back in the fall and winter.
I think each of us has our own ways of living the legacy…some of us have more than one way. What matters is that collectively, we do it. What we do in our little corner of the world may be "mundane," but it matters. We can Heal the World. We must, because We Are the World.

by Diana Foley
Copyright (c) 2011

Call For Love Devotion - July 1: Living the Legacy

Over the course of time, grief takes on different aspects – mourning, crying, being reflective, being quiet, detached, angry, frustrated, feeling helpless, wondering what to do now, how to go on when your own life is turned upside down. Then comes the loving tributes, the love letters, poems and pictures of our expressions of love and appreciation gushing from depths of our soul that we didn’t even know we had. Others find a resolution that they will be a warrior for him to defend him in the media and society. Or to be a healer for his wounds. Or a person who dresses like him or imitates his moves, looks, or sound. Or a person who can keep summarizing who he was, is and how we are involved together in this most unusual journey.

There is an aspect of celebration as a way of remembering. We want a good grasp on the story so that we can tell it to THIS generation, and the ones to follow. Correcting misconceptions and outright lies. Telling the WHOLE story, not just the media bias that is sensationalized for sales. We need to remember. We need to tell the story. We need to LIVE the story as well. That’s why we have holidays and monuments. Lest we forget.

We all had a was. A way of doing life. A routine. A purpose. Maybe even a goal we were looking to achieve. I know I was. But then June 25th came, and lots of events changed my whole purpose in life. I was thrust into a new purpose. How do I reconcile my ‘was’ with my ‘is’? How do I live the story? There’s a Hebrew word ‘zacar’. It means ‘to remember’. Remembering is a way of loving. Why do we need to remember? Because we are prone to forget. Or that those who follow us will not know the story – we want to keep on telling the story to those who don’t know.

What we remember is Michael’s impact on our world. A legacy is something that is handed down from a predecessor; it’s what we have inherited from them, their gift.

Living the legacy is a way to keep carrying on his impact. To learn his message and incorporate it in a way that is genuine to our own lives and how we are being PROMPTED to respond. Some resonate with the message of focusing on the planet’s well-being.... or children’s needs, or animal welfare, or issues of racial equality, and love among all people. In a word – his message is love.

There is the legacy of his unparalleled success as an entertainer – the unique music, lyrics, dancing and singing. The music that is yet to come. We live the legacy by finding our place in the message. Doing what WE can do – and it may become your new IS. Your whole new purpose. Or it may be a parallel sideline to everything you already do.

One of the things that struck me so hard one day was seeing a vinyl decal on the back of someone’s truck: “Elvis Lives”. I cried almost in rage saying that I was not willing to let Michael be reduced to a vinyl decal...he was bigger than that! But I understand that the way I live my life reflects what he’s taught me and how he's changed and inspired me. If you want to know what he’s taught me, you can read my eulogy on my FB page.

The media asked “What is his legacy?” His music. His way of life and making a change in our own lives to ‘make the world a better place’ in every way possible. Living a life as a giver, not a taker. Perpetuating his reputation, supporting his children – his legacy, and living in a way that shows him in an honorable light. Not just to revere his memory but to carry on his work. Now.

Early on, I was struck by the similarities of Michael’s life with one of the parables of Jesus. This one in particular came to me when I started to realize the global phenomenon that kept growing as more people were expressing how they were consumed by this one person who had changed their life:
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. (John 12:24)

MULTIPLY. Think for a moment of how many people have been thrust into action, carrying on Mike’s caring and generosity in ways they never did before. This has been a change from ONE person... to millions. Millions of people carrying on his work. There’s a saying that ‘the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church’... in other words.... whenever there has been unjust suffering or a cruel strike of something innocent and precious, people instinctively rise up and GET SERIOUS about the message determined not to have those people’s death be in vain. Instead of it being a defeat, it only causes the group to swell in determination.

For 50 years we had one magnificent person! Now look what has happened. Tons and tons of people carrying on his legacy of love. Millions of ‘Michaels’. There’s been a new awareness of who he is and what we have LOST. But also an awareness of what we GAINED. The legacy we inherited as part of this generation that had him and lost him. We will not squander the gift.
There has been such a spiritual awakening in so many people on a global scale that it is raising the vibrations of the love on earth. How’s THAT for a legacy! One seed was ‘planted’ but has not died... only given life to many multiples – spreading the same message, rising to our full potential, letting the inspiration that thrilled us in awe motivate us to shed our insecurities and be the influence of a ‘major love’ through prayer, our attititude, words and deeds. The message is bigger than our individual names or personalities. That’s why attention-seekers, grabbers or whathaveyou are like poison in this regard. The dividers, the ones who engage in vicious arguments and unloving behavior in the ‘fan base’ who cause irreparable harm is simply so contrary to Michael’s legacy. He was a man who exuded love. Any behavior otherwise is not only embarrassing, it simply does not belong and only serves to weaken the message and cause further harm of Michael’s reputation as we are the ones who now represent him to society at large. Again, I say it is POISON when such activities happen. Poison is the antithesis of love. Love does not tolerate this poison, for one drop of poison spoils the greater good.

Living the legacy means taking the best he offered, and being like that ourselves.
Encouraging the best out of others.

Living as an extreme giver, practicing “extravagant generosity” – no matter what our income

Believing in our own gifts, as well as believing in others’ as well – and telling them so

Living from the heart and soul... not just the wallet or our minds

Striving for the best of the best, because doing something with excellence is an expression of love

I was at Forest Lawn to celebrate and remember and show honor to him. Marty In LA has a super Michael Jackson music radio show on ustream Mondays and Fridays. He videoed my friend Shirley and myself about what we should remember Michael for. I talk about the legacy of love here:



And here is a commercial with Michael saying “Love is my message”


Show the love; live the legacy.

by Rita Bosico
Copyright (c) 2011