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I really hope there is a
heaven and somehow Selena knows how much she is missed and loved by all her
fans.
That somehow she knows what a great role model and inspiration she is to
millions of teenage girls especially (by no means exclusively) young
Mexican-American girls who proudly add the phrase “just like Selena” when
they tell someone they are Mexican-American.
There is no greater tragedy for a parent than having one of their children
pass on before them. The passing of time makes it more bearable, but the
pain never goes away.
Plus in the Quintanilla family's case they have been subjected to the
illogical ramblings of Selena’s killer. What this killer took from
Selena, her family, her friends, her fans and the world is immeasurable.
For years to come,
sadness and tears will be relived millions of times in the hearts of
young girls when they become aware of who Selena was and how her life was
cut short. Mothers will find it difficult to answer when their
daughters ask ‘Why was Selena killed?’ as there is no logical
answer. Her murder will never make sense and is a firm reminder of the cruelty
and evil which lurk within the hearts of some human beings.
Selena y Los Dinos would have made some incredible music over the last ten
years. Their music was only getting better and better. They were like a
well-oiled machine functioning on all cylinders. Yes, Selena's
crossover success into the English market happened after her death, but it
would have happened anyway. Selena was the real thing. Her
appeal was (and still is) universal.
She should be still with us; loving, laughing, making beautiful
music and living on
a big Corpus Christi farm with Chris and her five kids...
So on this, the tenth year anniversary of her death, yes it’s a time for
sadness and to reflect on what might have been, but it’s also a time to
celebrate the life of Selena Quintanilla Perez and be thankful that even
though she wasn’t with us as long as we’d like; at least she was with us for
23 years.
- T.
J.
March
31st, 2005
Being non-Hispanic and from Canada my chances of being
exposed to Selena’s music at the time of her untimely and tragic death on
March 31st 1995 were limited. Not knowing who Selena was,
nevertheless I felt sadness when I heard the news - as any compassionate
person would – when a person’s life is cut short through no fault of their
own.
When ‘Dreaming of You’ was released in July of 1995,
loving what I heard on the radio, I purchased her CD. Unlike some pop stars
today, who rely on technical manipulation in the studio and lip-syncing on
stage, Selena truly had a magnificent voice.
When ‘Selena’ the movie came out, I went to see it
opening weekend. I enjoyed the movie and Jennifer Lopez was great, but what
really struck me was the footage shown at the end of the movie of Selena.
It was the first time I had seen Selena, other than in still photos. Her
smile and charisma lit up the screen. I was mesmerized by her star
quality. I bought the 'Selena Soundtrack'.
Years
went by. I would play my two Selena CDs and counted myself as a Selena fan.
Occasionally I would surf the net for Selena tribute
websites. What frustrated me about many of the sites – not all – was that
they had made arrangements with Comet Systems (which I assume is some form
of Spy ware) which they continually ask you to download onto your computer
as a token of your appreciation for being allowed to visit their site. I
found it super-annoying.
Also some Selena sites were victims of their own gaudy
backgrounds, which only served to distract me from the content of the page.
Many were missing graphics and many had not been updated for a long time.
Being the webmaster of
www.thehockeypool.net (since moved to a
different URL), I decided that I would put a small Selena
tribute on my site. Thehockeypool.net is a site I run that has no ads and
is definitely not-for-profit. When I originally started the site in
October of 2000 my goal, other than to track the stats of our hockey pool,
was to try to expand it into a site that others would find useful.
The type of site that I would enjoy visiting.
One thing I wanted to do was to be able to play music on my
site (without using real player or windows media player etc.). I
found a small site (I think it was from Japan) where a guy had written a
program which would do so. You had to select each song to be played
individually, but it was better than nothing. Starting my
Selena site, I thought it would be only natural to use this program to put a
few Selena songs on my site. (Note: I have since upgraded the site's
music player.)
Originally, I linked to someone else’s Selena discography,
but I got to thinking, why not do my own version of her discography? One
thing led to another and soon I was researching and compiling Selena’s
lyrics for inclusion on my site. I added pictures, Corpus Christi
information, newspaper clippings, video clips etc. I guess you could say I
got carried away. Yesterday, I moved the site from thehockeypool.net site,
to the URL
www.selenaforever.com.
Along the way, I purchased ‘Selena Greatest Hits – DVD
version’, ‘Selena’s The Last Concert DVD’ and five CDs from the
20 Years Of Music series: ‘Selena’ ‘Entre A Mi Mundo’
‘Selena Live’ ‘Amor Prohibido’ and ‘Ven Conmigo’. I also
bought Chris Perez’s excellent 'Resurrection' CD.
Suddenly, I had turned from someone who thought he preferred
listening to songs sung in English into an enthusiastic Tejano music fan. I
love listening to Selena sing in Spanish. It’s a great and beautiful
language.
Her music is wonderful, but there was much more to Selena
than her music. Doing a bit of research, you learn of the charity
work she did on behalf of AIDS and other organizations and how she would
often donate her time to speak to young people about the dangers of drugs
etc. Unlike many stars today, Selena is a great role model for children
of all ages. She knew the importance of giving back and she was sexy, never
trashy.
Also,
it seems to me that everyone she came into contact with loved her. She
always had time for her fans and would never refuse a request for an
autograph. Her joy and zest for living are undisputable.
I love watching the ‘No Quiero Saber’ video. Her
smile, enthusiasm and charisma are infectious. Like she is in all her
videos, because that's who Selena was. Yet it’s impossible not to feel
sadness when thinking of or listening to Selena. I’m sure this is
something she would not want. And she would be right. One must
focus on the positive, not the negative. The music and happiness she
left us with and not what might have been, but for that sad day in 1995.
But even so, it saddens me and has even brought me to tears at
times that she’s not still here with us. And I’m just a fan from Canada. I
can only imagine how difficult the journey has been for her family and
friends.
One thing is certain, people do
not remember Selena because of how she died; they remember her for how she
lived. And if I can contribute to keeping the memory of this
beautiful and wonderful person alive even a tiny, tiny bit with this
website, it is truly my honour.
- T.
J.
Toronto, Ontario
February 29th, 2004
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