This year’s Grammy awards will probably go down in history as one of the most watched and most talked about. Of course, the big story was Whitney, and rightly so. She was a music icon, if not a legend, and her passing was riveting.
There were some other observations, however, that I think might be worth mentioning to parents.
On a very positive note, I was refreshed to see Adele win all 6 of the Grammys she was nominated for. Here is an exceptionally talented woman who is not a size 4, but who is classically beautiful and obviously not enveloped with superficial Hollywood size standards. As parents, we can reiterate that true talent does rise to the top. It also has a bit of staying power even with age, ala Paul McCartney, who still amazes.
I was also amused at Taylor Swift’s oh-so-clean but effective musical retort at all of her critics. A good spirited twist that allowed her the last laugh. What a great example for our young people to learn from; so much sweeter than “mean” revenge.
When it comes to domestic violence such as that from Chris Brown towards Rihanna just before the Grammys in 2008, I personally find it hard to believe that people can change. However, Chris Brown has been given a second chance, and as parents, wouldn’t we all appreciate the same if it were our child? Forgiveness is one of the most difficult things we do in this life, and even with mixed emotions, I find it encouraging that it has been publicly extended.
On a spiritual note, I was glad that LLCoolJ was not skewered for praying. In our politically correct world, so often prayer isn’t allowed. Not only did it happen, but I’ve yet to hear any complaints.
One more lesson, perhaps not as positive, but worth mention is the old truth that we do become like the people we entertain in our lives. One doesn’t have to look far in recent history to see that Bobby Brown had quite a criminal record prior to his marriage to Whitney Houston. Her career and reputation declined before all of our eyes following the union of the two. There are even stories about their daughter’s citations for illegal activities.
That being said, I don’t think it’s appropriate to blame Bobby Brown for Whitney’s choices; she made them, (and there are unflattering stories about her as well), but I do believe that those we keep close have great influence - for better or worse. When we, as parents talk with our children about the company they keep, these kinds of stories remind us that allowing negative influences in our lives can sometimes have extremely unfortunate consequences.
However, all things considered, our young people at the Grammys this year demonstrated more excellence than not. Real talent was rewarded, forgiveness extended, revenge sugar coated and prayer lifted. Not bad by today’s standards, not bad at all.
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