I was at my best friend's house. I loved going there because she had her own record player. So when Bad was over and the radio started playing something we weren't interested in, she took out her Michael Jackson records, put them on, and we were entertained for hours.
We danced to the songs on Thriller and Bad and, a few years later when Dangerous was released, Black or White and Heal the World took the top spots on our most favorite songs list. We were eight, and a little too old for jumping on the bed at that point, but we listened to the songs just the same.
Our parents were cool; cooler than cool, so there was very little kids music for us. Michael Jackson was all over the radio, all the rage in the late 80s and early 90s. It was what our parents listened to, so it was what we listened to. It was the background music to our childhoods, and the soundtrack to our friendship.
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| These Girls |
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| Became These Girls |
I was sitting at my desk at work in 2009 when I heard the news that Michael Jackson had died. Suddenly, his music was everywhere. It was playing on every radio station, his music videos were garnering a massive volume of hits on YouTube, and all the morning shows did daily retrospectives on his life and his life's work.
And every time I heard the first strains of Billie Jean, Heal The World, or Rock With You I thought of two little girls jumping on the bed who grew up into bigger girls, and gave thanks for a friendship that has spanned thirty years. A forever friendship.
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| And Then Grew Up Into These Girls |
