Rest in Peace, Patrick Swayze
I read the news this morning that Patrick Swayze was no longer with us. I know he had cancer for a couple of years, so I wasn’t really surprised, but I was sad.
When I was young, I had a mega-crush on Patrick. I think the first movie of his I saw was Dirty Dancing, and my eyes were glued to the TV. I practically wallpapered my room with posters of him. He was the first movie star that I could really call myself a fan of.
I swooned when I saw him in Ghost, and cheered him on when he was beating up the bad guys in Roadhouse. I can’t say that I’ve seen every single one of his movies, but I have watched most of them. I never watched The Beast, but I’m not sure I could have handled it anyway. It was all I could do to keep from tearing up when I saw pictures of him looking so frail in magazines at the grocery store checkout.
I applaud Patrick Swayze for living life on his own terms and continuing to do what he loved to do, even after he was diagnosed with cancer. And one of these days, I will watch his last TV show. But for now, I’m happier to remember him the way he was when I was young. Rest in peace, Patrick.
