Thank you for telling the story. It must have cost. It meant so much to me because it wasn't poetic, romanticised or dramatised: it was human. The best we can ever be.
When Eddie died I was working as a public health nurse & responsible for the roll out of the Men C vaccine later in 2000. Vaccines to protect against meningococcal infection have advanced so much & children are protected against the disease throughout their childhood now. 0:41 0:41 This vaccine prevented so many deaths like Eddie’s. Listening to you talk about your son is so moving, not maudlin but honest & personal & funny. I only wish that these vaccines could have come sooner for young people like Eddie. Love to you all. ❤❤
So much of this resonates Michael, for anyone who's lost someone close. The 'music' is the one that follows me, finding its way through the cracks. Thanks for this, it will help many, I'm sure of it.
An Orange Head Joke: A man walks into a bar. As he's ordering a beer, he happens to glance down towards the other end of the bar and see a man with a big orange head. As the bartender brings his beer, the man asks him, "What's with the guy with the big orange head?" The bartender chuckles. "Yeah," he says, "That's a helluva story, alright. Why don't you go buy him a drink, and maybe he'll tell you about it." So the man walks over to the guy with the orange head, introduces himself, and offers to buy him a beer. The guy with the orange head says, "Let me guess. You want to hear about the head?" The first guy says, "Well, yeah. If you don't mind." The man with the orange head says, "Alright. Lord knows I've run it over in my mind a million times, anyway. So, it's like this: One day, I was walking along a beach, when I stubbed my toe on something. I looked down, and there, sticking out of the sand, was an antique lamp. So I picked it up and brushed away some of the sand, when a big cloud of blue smoke erupted from it. When the smoke cleared, a genie was standing there. And this genie said to me, 'Thank you for freeing me from my 5,000-year confinement. For doing this, I will grant you two wishes.' "So, I think, wow, okay. And I do what many people would. For my first wish, I wish to be fantastically wealthy. So the genie snaps his fingers, and suddenly I'm covered in jewels. Hundreds of necklaces, three rings per finger, a crown on my head, and a chest full of gold next to me besides all that." At this point in the story, the first man is in amazement. He just can't believe what he's hearing. Eager to hear the rest, he says, "So what was your second wish?" The man with the orange head slowly takes a sip of his beer. He puts it down, and says, "You know. This may be where I went wrong... I wished for a big orange head."
It’s a shame because Michael’s “Eddie” poems are hilarious and silly and arguably some of his best, but they have this terribly sad story connected to them
Its coming on 10 years since I lost my older brother to suicide. He was the same age as eddie. I cant tell you how much I resonated with so many aspects of what you've told here, but the two that stick out are the almost clinical relationship we must find with the event itself to be able to tell others about it and the tiny things we lose in the time afterwards. There are many jokes about a man with an orange head that I've also lost. Thank you for writing and reading this beautiful story about your boy.
Thank you! . This was incredibly moving and had me in tears several times. It is full of love and compassion and one of the most touching expressions of grief I have ever listened to. Thank you again.
This is a masterpiece.... a work of art... The way mr Rosen is narrating these stories is hypnotizing really. I wish I get to the tenth of the level that this legend is on story telling.
My deepest condolence micheal. My daughter has hydrocephalus because of listerial meningitis. I cannot begin to even imagine the pain you have felt. But even throughout all this you tell this story beautifully ❤
@@hellishcyberdemon7112 Nah they are still funny due to being so stupid and over the top, plus the source material is only from his poems or TV appearances, not tragic life stories.
Thank you for telling your story- there is no pain like the loss of a loved one and I know it couldn’t have been easy. It’s beautiful to hear about your love for your son; I’m sorry for your loss. Thank you again!
Thank you @michaelrosen5422 I hope I never experience that level of suffering, and all the unexpected ways that it suddenly comes to the top of consciousness.
Eddie died in 1999. In that year and the year before we played Tekken. We also played a football game. It may have been called Fifa or something else, now you come to mention it, though I'm pretty sure it was Fifa. Or are you muddled over who was nearly 19? Eddie was nearly 19 in 1999. He died. I'm 77. I didn't die.
@@michaelrosen5422 oh jeez, how embarrassing of me. When listening to this I somehow assumed you were both around the same age (I never read the video description) - I didn't know it was your son you were talking about until now. Still, thank you for sharing your story Michael.
How unbelievably tough and painful for you to live with dear Eddie’s loss Michael. I believe when we are grieving there is no right or wrong - we just do whatever helps us cope with our loss. We talk, we don’t talk, we share, we don’t share, we visit places that help us remember, or not but whatever we need to do is OK. I read that the body deals with grief with the same processes it deals with a major injury. This helped me understand that when we are grieving we do well to look after ourselves with gentleness, love and caring. God bless.
A man walks into a bar. As he's ordering a beer, he happens to glance down towards the other end of the bar and see a man with a big orange head. As the bartender brings his beer, the man asks him, "What's with the guy with the big orange head?" The bartender chuckles. "Yeah," he says, "That's a helluva story, alright. Why don't you go buy him a drink, and maybe he'll tell you about it." So the man walks over to the guy with the orange head, introduces himself, and offers to buy him a beer. The guy with the orange head says, "Let me guess. You want to hear about the head?" The first guy says, "Well, yeah. If you don't mind." The man with the orange head says, "Alright. Lord knows I've run it over in my mind a million times, anyway. So, it's like this: One day, I was walking along a beach, when I stubbed my toe on something. I looked down, and there, sticking out of the sand, was an antique lamp. So I picked it up and brushed away some of the sand, when a big cloud of blue smoke erupted from it. When the smoke cleared, a genie was standing there. And this genie said to me, 'Thank you for freeing me from my 5,000-year confinement. For doing this, I will grant you two wishes.' "So, I think, wow, okay. And I do what many people would. For my first wish, I wish to be fantastically wealthy. So the genie snaps his fingers, and suddenly I'm covered in jewels. Hundreds of necklaces, three rings per finger, a crown on my head, and a chest full of gold next to me besides all that." At this point in the story, the first man is in amazement. He just can't believe what he's hearing. Eager to hear the rest, he says, "So what was your second wish?" The man with the orange head slowly takes a sip of his beer. He puts it down, and says, "You know. This may be where I went wrong... I wished for a big orange head."
Because that would be extremely distasteful and messed up, especially since the story is pretty sad and it was a trauma that Michael still can't get over.
I love my dog more than I love myself, when the time comes my biggest fear is people not understanding the love we had. the fear of hearing he is just a dog, and will I get another is something that lsvared me everyday Respect all loss of life great and small. This was a bittersweet story that will help Millions deal with loss, Micheal you are wonderful I am deeply sorry for your loss.
