How can you just leave me standing?
Alone in a world that’s so cold?
-Prince, “When Doves Cry”
Here I was packing to go to Minnesota for my cousin’s bridal shower and my niece’s first communion when I got the news of Prince’s untimely death.
And now, here I sit – a blur of purple memories racing through my mind. I almost feel like I’m returning home to pay my respects – because in a way, I am.
A world without Prince. It’s hard to imagine.
I grew up in Eden Prairie, not far from where he lived.
I used to see him at the gas station and driving his purple BMW on the back roads when I went to the barn where we kept our horses in Chanhassen.
My Aunt Mindy took me to see Purple Rain. It was the first R rated movie I ever saw.
My school bus used to drive under the famed Graffiti Bridge (which inspired his album of the same name) every day.
Photo: Jennifer Jacobson
I remember driving around in my little red Acura Integra with “Little Red Corvette” blasting out the sunroof.
After I moved to Indianapolis and became a Colts fan, it was Prince who performed the halftime show and sang “Purple Rain” in the rain before the Colts won Super Bowl XLI. I still say it was the best halftime show ever. And not just because I’m a Colts fan.
You made a special day even more magical. #SBXLI
Rest in peace, Prince. pic.twitter.com/jjpCHRC5Eh
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) April 21, 2016
The soundtrack of my childhood. The musician I grew up with. The man who put Minneapolis on the music map. And he never left the Midwest. He had other houses, but Minnesota was always home.
He changed the scene. He changed his tune. He changed his hair. He changed his name. But he always stayed true to who he was.
#IPLlights will turn purple tonight to honor #Prince, a beloved musician and icon gone too soon. #RIPprince pic.twitter.com/HE6zxwuoRI
— IPL Power (@IPLPower) April 21, 2016
There will be other princes. But there will never be another Prince.
Rest well, my sweet Prince.
Until we meet again…
