FANS IN GRIEF

Tina Turner has passed away and I mourn her death because I am a fan.

She has been in my thoughts ever since the news of her demise was made public and, in my mind’s eye, I see different Tinas. They are images that follow one another, each one enhancing the other.

The first mental picture is revealing in the sense that it suddenly dawns on me she started singing to heal herself from the emotional suffering she experienced both as a child and as a young woman. In another image she is rhythm personified, not only when she sings and dances onstage but also when she walks with supreme elegance.

One video shows her coming out of a limo in black stilettos and a sexy low-cut dress. The camera follows her sensual gait until she steps into the theatre where she is about to perform before a full house. I can also see her making a spectacular entrance as Proud Mary, not singing this time but making a new start after divorcing Ike Turner. Last but not least, Tina is the ‘Private Dancer,’ whose work was only a means to an end. What the dancer was after was having “a husband and some children” as the lyrics say.

Likewise, Tina had five sons, who were her most treasured blessings and when she lost two of them, her devastation was insurmountable. My mind keeps creating more images of Tina Turner, the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, with valuable insights into the person, the mother, the wife, which tells me she will be missed greatly as the void left by losing her will never be filled.

Adrian Insaubralde, Santa Fe