For the Record: I Just Really Miss You
I don’t normally focus on the personal lives of musicians or artists. Sure, music news breaches high-profile losses, like the passing of Etta James that I took time to mention a couple of weeks ago. Such things can be near impossible to avoid if you’re treading through the wired waters of industry cyber-talk. Matters of less direct change for an artist don’t tend to always flood as many screens though. All the same, that doesn’t mean they don’t have as much significance and for one artist right now, I’m making an exception.
Miranda Lambert has really come into her own as a top noted country artist over the past couple of years. Having claimed some of the industry’s and country genre’s strongest accolades, her name has gained more recognition than it had a few years back. She’s become one of those people to watch out for now, whenever awards are involved and more people take notice of her actions.
You could say Lambert’s life events of recent weeks have fallen into this category of adequately newsworthy, though nothing that was within her control, as NPR took time to do a twin posting report on the few but poignant details of two close together losses, which unabashedly invaded the lives of Lambert and her husband, country artist, Blake Shelton.
“A news release Sunday says Lambert’s childhood friend Mark “Tex” Adams was killed in a traffic accident in Florida [the week of the 24th.] He was sideswiped by a vehicle after he had pulled over to help another driver. It’s the second loss of a close friend in recent weeks for Lambert, whose father-in-law, Dick Shelton, died Jan. 17.”
(Cit. the Associated Press via NPR.com)
Though we’ve gone through a full week anew since this second death occurred, timing’s painful strike seems to leave little room for even the shortest of moments for Lambert to find her breath. She received word today, that her dog Dixie passed away, while already needing to devote today to facing the emotional challenge of her friend’s funeral.
“My best friend, father in law and now my dog Dixie. My dog died thursday. My parents just told me. Headed now to bury my friend of 20 years. ”
(Cit. Miranda Lambert’s Official Twitter Account)
The grief and loss club is one no one ever wants to be in. Hearing about three consecutive shocks like that… The reason I feel compelled to help spread word of Lambert’s current difficulties is because, from my own experience, knowing others were thinking of me when I’ve been overcome with the shock of multiple losses helped when it felt like I couldn’t help myself. The times when it was, and still occasionally is, impossible to stop feeling sad, even when you desperately want to.
Miranda Lambert happens to be a favorite country singer of mine, as I connect her music with some of the best times, best people and best feelings in my life. There’s a special place in my heart for her work. I suppose, in a way, that makes this post somewhat “fan” driven. However, I’m also driven by the common thread of empathy that any one person gains with another, either in good times or bad. It doesn’t matter if she’s famous or not, love and loss can come to everybody and right now I’m just seeing Miranda Lambert as another feeling person rather than an unreachable star. She just happens to communicate powerful feelings to many through music.
I know there were some nights where I just needed to be alone and be upset; not trying to shove it down. I guess you could call it a break from denial. This one song of Lambert’s was frequently playing in my ears and although there’s virtually nothing positive to be said about it, that’s part of grief: dealing with things just as they are and taking the pain that comes along with it, realizing things will get better over time. (which they did.) Hopefully Lambert will also find a song, either from someone else or within herself, that will help her come to grips with everything that’s hurt her.
Miranda Lambert-I Just Really Miss You
**UPDATE – 10:58PM** Interestingly enough, not long after I first posted this entry earlier in the afternoon, Lambert’s official Facebook page had these words to say –an excerpt from the introduction to “Over You” at her show in Huntsville, Alabama yesterday, February 2nd:
“I’ve learned something over the past couple of weeks – that it’s ok to let music heal ya. That when you listen to the words of something that make you feel, you ought to just feel it and suffer through it…because it makes you stronger on the other side.”
Guess that common thread of empathy exists more than I had thought it did already….
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