Dear Marni,
It’s hard to believe you left us behind 10 years ago. I wish you were still here with us, and I know I’m not the only one when I say that. Even though we never met in person, we had one huge common bond, our love of Rick Springfield. I miss your daily posts on the emailing list for his fans. You sure knew how to make a girl chuckle or, at the very least, crack a smile, especially on the frequent bad days I was having back then. I remember how we shared ideas about “Rickfest,” an event similar to Woodstock, only it was on the 60 acres where I once lived with my now ex-husband. I remember the video ideas you had for each of Rick’s new songs off of his album Karma. I’m so glad I was able to personally hand Rick a copy of the idea you had for his song “Prayer” when I met him backstage in July 1999 in Indianapolis. In return I thanked you for his live CD you sent to me a few months later. I’m so glad you finally got to meet Rick yourself.
Ten years later, a lot of things have changed in my life. After I filed for divorce, my two children and I moved back to what I would consider my hometown of Martinsville since I’ve lived here the longest. The last 8½ years haven’t been the easiest, but I’ve become a much stronger person because of it. I lost the one and only teaching job I had due to cutbacks so now I work as a special education aide at my alma mater high school. I wish I could teach, but this is the next best thing because I am still using my English knowledge. I work as a tutor at the Haven Youth Center after school and am a Creative Memories consultant. I also write in my spare time and have written a book about my marching band memories called Living, Sleeping and Eating Band. I’m working on my second book and already have an idea for a third one. You’ll be a part of that because it’s about how I became a fan of Rick’s and things that happened while I’ve been a fan. You might remember that I have two children, who are very important to me. My daughter is now a freshman, and my son is a 6th grader. They sure are growing up quickly, and they keep me quite busy. I never miss one of their activities whether it’s a choir concert, a baseball or football game, or something else.
With all of the tragedy that happens in our world, I’ve decided to live each day like it’s the last. I’m trying to throw the negativity out and be a more positive person, but sometimes that’s hard to do when the people around you are negative. I try to spend as much time as I can with my small family because you just never know what will happen next as I’m sure you found out on the fateful day 10 years ago. Please know that I’ll be thinking about you as we approach the anniversary of 9/11, and I’m sure the Rick list will do something special in your memory as we do every year. I know you’re looking down on us and thinking about the impact you had on us fellow Rick fans. We’ll certainly never forget you.