Never Can Say Goodbye.

I'm almost at a loss for words. First the great Bernie Mac passing away at such a young age and now the legendary Isaac Hayes . For some reason the loss of the people with the gift to reach us through laughter and song REALLY hits home. Something about the silencing of that singular voice simply hurts. It also slams home a few issue with personal mortality that can be hard to examine.

You have heard the last Isaac Hayes song, the last Bernie Mac joke, the last Luther Vandross tune. It reminds us that we have or will soon hear the last from our own loved ones. That hurts. After the hurt though one has to focus on the moments...THE MOMENTS. That doesn't just apply to musicians or comedians that touched us but mostly to the people we actually know that touched us.

Never can say goodbye? You don't have. Remember them.

Update: Here are two excellent essays on Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes from The Root.com. Be sure to give a listen to this interview from NPR (recorded 7.28.94) "Remembering Soul Icon Isaac Hayes". Good stuff.