Tina Turner has died.
The legendary singer was 83. I have always loved her music. I currently have several of her CDs in my collection. I watched many of her televised concerts over the years.
In addition to her powerful voice, I was always in awe that she could dance throughout the concert on 3 inch heels. I know I couldn’t walk in heels that high, much less dance and sing simultaneously.
I am always saddened by the passing of an icon. But her death has hit me really hard. She was only a few years older than I am when she died. Perhaps it’s knowing all the things she overcame and all the torment, both physical and emotional, that she endured before she became a superstar. Her current husband reported that she continued to suffer from PTSD as a result of abuse by her first husband.
She said she was an unwanted child who was abused by her father and unloved by her mother. She was raised by her grandmother. She was beaten by Ike Turner, her husband of 16 years, until one day she found the courage to leave with, as she reported, a Mobil card, a quarter, a dime and a penny to her name.
Fortunately for the world, Tina never gave up. She persevered. And she was rewarded with an amazing career, tons of money and worldwide acclaim. She ultimately met the wonderful man she eventually married. She gave up her US citizenship and became a citizen of Switzerland, where she lived until her death.
Tina Turner has been described as a survivor, a role model for abused women, and at the end of her life, as an advocate for controlling one's blood pressure. She ignored her high blood pressure for many years, which caused her to have a stroke and to severely damage her kidneys.
Tina Turner was a singer, a superstar, a survivor, a pioneer.
My favorite description of this incomparable woman was from Dan Rather, who described her as a force of nature.
That she certainly was.
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