The Las Vegas Stories. Barb Collentine

Another great story..Barb, thanks to you I feel like I was there too..in that moment in time

Las Vegas— Our Moment. 

          We came from all over the world. 

We came from Netherlands, Denmark, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, South America, America. We came on planes, buses and cars; we took Ubers and shuttles. We brought suitcases, we brought make up bags. We brought cameras and iPhones and iPads. We brought it all and we had been waiting to come for two years. 

We came to Vegas. 

We came for David. 

What else can I add about the Las Vegas Star event where we came from every corner of the globe for the man who throughout all our lives remained tucked into every corner of our hearts? How do I explain the feelings? We were speechless, we were tear-filled, we were silly, we were joyful. We were instant friends who’d never known each other but who for 51 years continued to tend the same emotion in each of our hearts: love for David Cassidy. Sure, our “teen idol,” but 51 years later— our bond; our symbol of love and friendship. 

We stood by the newly placed star on the sidewalk under that beautiful sunny blue skied April 12th and we held hands, we danced, we sang and we cried. We took pictures, we took video, we selfied, we group shot; some wore masks and some wore Mondrian. We were loud and we were proud. 

And yet, if we really listened, there was a silence and a reverence surrounding us as people passed us that morning on that sidewalk in front of the Paris Hotel. They didn’t laugh, they didn’t point, they didn’t question. They gave us our space, they watched where they walked and they left the teasing aside. They did this because they could “hear” that we had come from all over the world and they could “feel” that we were experiencing something they couldn’t quite understand.

They did this because they recognized that this was a moment in time for us. 

So when they stopped mid-step, they stopped to watch as we honored David and they could tell that we represented what no one else in the four short years since he left us had yet to understand: 

David Cassidy had made a mark on the world.

And there on that sidewalk that day, we were an example of how an artist and his art can be forever.