Eddie
How do you mourn someone you never met, but who had a profound impact on your life?
You set down the ice cream and pick up the pencils. You crank up the music and remember… your first concert (Van Halen with Gary Cherone), the first guitar you ever purchased (a EVH Wolfgang), the guitar playing mentors who remain friends today (because that Wolfgang brought me to Peavey’s guitar forum.) You remember the life-size poster of Eddie that sat in your bedroom, and the posters of his band that lined your wall. You remember the reason you picked up the guitar (Van Halen’s “Balance”) and the reasons why you’ll argue that Sammy Hagar was their best singer, hands down. You remember the lessons you learned (“How do you know when it’s love? I can’t tell you, but it’ll last forever”) and the sadness you felt when you realized there will never be a “final tour.”
You feel it all and draw it out… and you remember that its OK to mourn someone you never met, because he changed your life.