Nows and Forevers

I can’t believe that it’s been seven years since David Bowie left us. I have to say the world hasn’t been the same since.

Even though he had been a recording artist since the late 1960s, and was one of the most popular singers in the world in the early 1980s, I never really thought of him as mortal. Bowie seemed timeless. And I have the feeling that he wasn’t done speaking to us when he died Jan. 10, 2016.

Primarily, he was a musician, though he was so much more. His “Serious Moonlight” phase, in the early ’80s, was perfectly timed with my awakening as a music lover. But he was also an actor, and I especially liked him as Pilate in “The Last Temptation of Christ.”

I feel we also lost something else, too: Bowie’s life, and the way he lived it, opened the door for youth and adults to live their lives the way they wanted. His bisexuality, and his openness about it, helped pave the way for acceptance. That’s a blessing, too, because I remember the 1970s and 1980s and the narrow views of society then.

I also like the way he collaborated (with Queen, with Brian Eno, even with Bing Crosby) and his desire to evolve and his ever-growing embrace of creativity in all forms. I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately, as I try to do things creatively in my own way (writing) that I’ve never done before.

“If you feel safe in the area you’re working in, you’re not working in the right area,” Bowie said one time. “Always go a little further into the writer than you feel you’re capable of being in. Go a little bit out of your depth, and when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.”

Great, if scary, advice. But I’m trying to embrace the fear and confront what I fear. David Bowie’s advice still lives on in those of us who do.