I can't believe it's been 20 years since the passing of Jim Henson. It still chokes me up when I see his work and the tributes and look at the things as I watched as a child now through the eyes of an adult. There were so many layers to what he did. When I listened to "It's Not Easy Bein' Green" as a child, I knew Kermit was talking about being okay with who you are, but as an adult now I see just how important it was to hear that as a child and for many different reasons.
How many people do you know who didn't watch Sesame Street as a kid, or The Muppet Show? I remember seeing the Muppet movies in the theater when I was young. I think my favorite was "The Great Muppet Caper." Of course, then there was "The Dark Crystal" with the creepy Skeksis, and the most excellent "Labyrinth." My Christmases were always accompanied by the Muppets singing carols with John Denver, and Saturday mornings shared with the Muppet Babies.
I remember when Jim Henson died, I was so sad - I felt like part of my childhood died along with him. Then to top it all off, the next day's news was filled with the death of Sammy Davis Jr and I felt like the limelight was taken off of the more deserving person. Ah, the logic of a 15-year-old.
He once said, "I`ve always tried to present a positive view of the world in my work. It`s so much easier to be negative and cynical and predict doom for the world than it is to try and figure out how to make things better. We have an obligation to do the latter." I still look at his work as a source of encouragement and a little bit of positivity when I start to feel down. I tend to go back to one of the last lines from "The Muppet Movie"
"Life's like a movie
Write your own ending.
Keep believing,
Keep pretending."
Something for everyone to remember.
Thanks for trying to make a better world, Jim. You're still missed.
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