Death of a "Working Class Hero"

I know this shouldn't be about me, I just can't fathom for the life of me, how you can gauge the true worth of a human being without taking in to account his impact on the hearts & minds of his fellow man.


John Lennon's persona, that which speaks to us, through his music, art, written and spoken media, had (and still has) a huge influence on millions of people world wide.
He was honest, incisive, outspoken, sometimes brash, crude, cheeky, violent, abrasive & misguided, but always interesting.

A great sense of humor and perfect comic timing disguised a sensitive soul, and nagging insecurities.

That He was a musical genius, is not so much a question of personal opinion, but more a matter of public record.(pun intended)

I love his songs and the way they make me feel, They are frequently autobiographical and sometimes intensely personal. They speak of life, angst, love, and his life-long quest for world peace.

I was (17) then, I'm 42 at the time of this writing, and yet the events of December 1980 are as clearly ingrained in my heart and mind today, as they were on that sad, sad day twenty-five years ago.

Having just decided to take a break from my mounds of grueling grade eleven homework. I clicked on my radio and was leaning back in my chair; I could hear the chattering of happy children at play in the yard next door, life was good, and all was right with the world.

Then suddenly there it was, an urgent, Earth-shattering news bulletin.

"John Lennon is dead!!!!!"

"Having sustained lethal gunshot wounds outside his Dakota apartment building, the Rock legend, and former Beatle, John Winston Lennon, has just been pronounced dead-on-arrival at an unnamed New York city hospital".

My immediate reaction was "Yeah right!!! John dead? No way!!"

What kind of dirty, mean-spirited garbage was this?
It just had to be some kind of tasteless prank, right?
No one in his/her right mind could kill John Lennon. It just was not possible!

I swore, in bitter disgust, never to set ears on that radio station ever again, but a lightning sweep of the the dial, quickly confirmed my worst fears.

I was astounded! Practically every station was abuzz with the news, There were Debates, commentaries, and a million speculations flying through the ether. How could this be? How could such a thing be allowed to happen? Some stations were observing a minute of stunned silence; still others were playing John's songs.

I was shocked. The realization made my blood run cold. How could some one do this. He was a conduit for peace and love, adored and/or admired by the masses.

The truth can be so incredibly painful. A one-sided battle raged in my mind as I fought with reality tried to deny what I'd seen and heard.

I remember feeling so victimized; as if this hellacious deed had been committed on a dear friend or family member. I sat staring at the paint work for what seemed like hours, a tremendous shroud of darkness fastidiously draping itself over me and suffocating my soul. The tears rolled down my face and soaked into the pages of my Algebra notebook.

The next few days passed in a haze of unreality. I functioned but in a purely perfunctory way. I vaguely remember thinking that if his death hurts me this much, then what must it be like for his family and friends.

Tributes and memorials were flying out from every venue. It seemed to me, that the whole world was in mourning. People flocked by the thousands to the scene of the crime and to gatherings all over the globe in order to share their grief and to pay homage to their "Working Class Hero"

It may seem hard to believe that one single man whom most of us have never met, except through his words, his art and his music, can move us so.

John may have been stolen from us on that cold stark day, but his beautiful songs and his haunting anthems for global peace, harmony and love, still ring out loud and clear; their message every bit as poignant, relevant and timely today as they were way back when..

His legend lives on perpetually in the hearts and minds of his millions of adoring fans.

Rest in peace John Lennon, we will never forget.

Your brilliant light will shine on forever more!