Cancer journey co-pilot's log star date 12.15.23. Instead of a status report at this difficult time of year, I welcome you to take the Way Back Machine to the holiday season of 2020. This was our second Christmas since Kara's cancer diagnosis. Kara was doing chemo, I was unemployed, and neither of us had a whole lot to do. So we reenacted the video performance of Elvis Presley's "It's Christmas Time" that we filmed for Kara's relatives with a bulky VHS camera 24 years earlier! For comparison, I added our original 1996 performance in a small window in the upper right-hand corner. Apparently I was too rock'n'roll to ride a hi-hat in the days of my youth. And notice Kara does the exact same tapping of her ribs right before the piano solo! Side note: I think it's prophetic that long before Kara discovered air guitar, she was lip syncing into hot sauce bottles. :) Her inner weird was just waiting to come out.
In other news, if you haven't seen it yet, here is the official flyer for the Kara Picante Muir Sparkle Celebration, courtesy of the graphic design skills of our friend and fellow air guitarist, Luke Sevcik. No offense to your parents, but this ain't your daddy's funeral (and my dad had a pretty cool funeral)! This event will honor the Queen of Sparkle in the way she would want, yet hold space for those in attendance to experience all the feelings that may arise during the occasion. With the vital aid of the Sparkle Celebration Crew, we are going to make magic that I hope will linger in the mind for year's to come. If you know and love Kara, I encourage you to join us!
Until next time.
--Charles Austin Muir
