I always wondered what it would be like to go to one of Dan Fogelberg's concerts. We were going to go on his last tour, but it was cancelled because he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
The Living Legacy will be creating a memorial fund in Dan's name with the Prostate Cancer Foundation. This is a good cause even if you weren't a fan of his.
Dan would like that.
Singers can have such an influence on our lives. Tonight I'm grieving a man I never met, a man who doesn't know I exist, and all because of the music he brought to my life.
I love the heart in his music. That's why it meant so much to me.
My thoughts and prayers will stay with the family for some time to come.
Grief is difficult. I wish there was an easier way to leave this planet, a way that left us able to connect with our loved ones.
Dan's family, though, has the comfort of knowing that his life made a difference to others. If I died today, I don't know if my family would have that same comfort. I'd like to think so, but I just don't know.
Would your loved ones be able to say that about you? Have you made a difference in the world? Have you made a difference to them?
I'm finding words difficult tonight. I think I'll just close with one of my favorite songs of Dan's called Nether Lands.
Nether Lands
High on this mountain
The clouds down below
I'm feeling so strong and alive
From this rocky perch
I'll continue to search
For the wind and the snow and the sky
Oh I want a lover and I want some friends
And I want to live in the sun
And I want to do all the things that I never have done
Sunny bright mornings and pale moonlit nights
Keep me from feeling alone
Now I'm learning to fly and this freedom is like
Nothing that I've ever known
Oh I've seen the bottom and I've been on top
But mostly I've lived in between
And where do you go when you get to the end of your dream
Off in the Nether Lands I heard the sound
Like the beating of heavenly wings
And deep in my brain I can hear a refrain
Of my soul as she rises and sings
Anthems to glory and anthems to love
And hymns filled with earthly delight
Like the songs that the darkness composes to worship the light
Once in a vision I came on some woods
And stood at a fork in the road
My choices were clear yet I froze with the fear
Of not knowing which way to go
Oh, one road was simple acceptance of life
The other road offered sweet peace
When I made my decision
My vision became my release
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2 comments:
in 1978 i was riding in a car with a friend who said "listen to this" and popped a Dan Fogelberg tape into the player. the song was Netherlands. i'll never be able to intellectually understand it but at that very moment an massive energetic explosion occurred from inside me - strangest thing you can image. my life has never been the same. i went and got all that dan had written up until then and my life transformed dramatically from a society-defined, PC, 'do what others say' life to a deeply authentic and organic life. i am forever grateful for all i was given through Dan's music (and it isn't the 'greatest hits' where the best lies either!) i am grieving deeply today (equal to my gratitude). couldn't even stay in a work meeting. i feel i have lost a beloved family member. my heart goes out to Jean and the rest of Dan's family.
In the short time I've known you, your life HAS made a difference to ME. I can only imagine what effect you've had on your family and others close to you. Dan's legacy will live on through you and many other fans who will choose to continue to make a difference.
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