All the buzz today is about the loss of our Queen of Soul, the amazingly talented Miss Aretha Franklin. I'm old enough to remember when she dominated the charts. When her song "R.E.S.P.E.C.T" was the anthem for young women everywhere, demanding our right to be treated as equals, when feminism was still "new".
I've always loved her voice. My grandfather loved her power, her stance as a strong women, and her fearlessness. He was not what I would consider a music fan, but when it came to her, he was all ears.
Miss Aretha taught me a lot, at a young age, even though she didn't know it. I suspect the adults (at the time) in my family didn't realize it either. Aretha's songs taught me that women can stand on their own two feet, taking care of business and family, and that we should never settle for less.
I will miss her, she was one feisty woman, and I loved watching her put younger singers "in their place". Truly the Queen Bee (sorry Beyonce, but Miss Aretha was, is, and will always be the True Queen of Soul) of Motown, and popular music in general.
Now to find a fitting way to give her a nod in one of my storylines. She made the world a better place.
