CELEBRATE

Love.  It’s worth celebrating, isn’t it? 

In a world that seems to be rearranging itself on a minute-by-minute basis, I feel we need to celebrate all we can, as often and as outrageously as possible. 

This week, as wildly disturbing things occurred all around us, I found an unexpected celebration of both love and one of our most beloved legends, simultaneously. 

I am a lifelong unabashed fan of Dick Van Dyke. From Mary Poppins to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to the Dick Van Dyke show, he was a bright light in my mottled childhood. I thought he was the most magical person and over time, he became my ideal for what a father could be when my own really wasn’t up to the job. I adored him, from afar, and have loved showing my kids and granddaughters his work over the years.

One of the happiest days of my life was meeting his son, Barry, at an event in Washington DC, who was then kind enough to introduce me to his father. It was then I realized how I’d idolized him and much to my delight, he was everything I’d imagined he would be, even in his eighties. We chatted for a very long time, the event going on around us and his attention focused completely on our conversation. I have no idea what we said now, yet I was so incredibly happy to be in his presence.  To know this gentle yet effervescent soul – what a gift. The next day, I would meet and have a similar chat with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It was a weekend that changed my life in so many ways that I couldn’t have seen then. Mind blowing, soul expanding, pure magic. 

So I’ve often said that I wish everyone could meet these bright lights and experience what it feels like to be in that kind of divine presence here on earth. And just the other day, I came across a video that certainly allows the next best thing, so I wanted to share it with you.

God and all the ancestors bless Chris Martin, Coldplay and Spike Jones for making this video – you can view it here. They have captured, as much as is humanly possible, the very essence of an icon – and of love.  Where would we be without our creatives, and all the light they bring with their gifts. The video showcases not only Dick’s long-lasting talent as an artist at 99 years of age but his depth of good as a human being and Chris’s magic in the musical realm, but also that of Dick’s home, memories and family.  It’s an intimate window into a life well lived. A life we can all celebrate.

And it is so much about love.  When asked what love is, Dick Van Dyke answered “It is certainly a feeling of caring about the welfare and the life of the other person as much as you care for yourself. “

That’s something we can all do, isn’t it? 

We can all celebrate that, can’t we? 

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