You Ain't Never Had Friend Like Me

I'm sure by now you've all heard the news about Robin Williams.  It's always sad to hear news of a celebrity's passing, but this one hurts more than others.  Like so many, I grew up watching Robin and he was part of my childhood.  

Photo Source: RobinWilliams.com

Aladdin was my favorite Disney movie growing up.  I loved the original, the movie sequels and the television show.  If you asked 10 year old me, I'd tell you that my favorite Disney princess was Jasmine.  My favorite Disney song was "A Whole New World" and I'm pretty sure Rajah is where my love of tigers came from.

Photo Source: Key to the World Travel Facebook Page

Jeremy and I loved Aladdin.  We'd watch it over and over again.  Jeremy had the Aladdin action figures and we'd play with them for hours.  We used to do performances with our cousins on my Mom's side and Aladdin was our go to favorite.  (We performed it at least 3 different times.)  The Genie was one of Jeremy's favorites.  While doing our skits, he always insisted he play the Genie.  Somewhere, I have a picture of him in his Genie shirt while he acted as the Genie.  (I've looked all afternoon and I can't find it.)

Photo Source: Doctor Disney Facebook Page

Genie was the character who made a lasting impression.  He was the one who stole the show, who you remembered quotes from.  I remember us running around the house saying, "Phenomenal cosmic powers!  Itty bitty living space" all the time.  Another one of our favorites was "Jafar, Jafar, he's our man; if he can't do it, great!"  To this day, I can still come up with Genie quotes.  In fact, I'm honestly not sure that I can quote any Disney character as well as I could Genie. 

Photo Source: Pinterest

Robin Williams was the man who always made me laugh.  I was incredibly saddened to find out that while he was making all of us laugh, he was fighting a battle on his own.  So many people looked to him for laughter and a means of escape from daily life.  I only wish that we could have returned the favor.  

Photo Source: The Disney Princess Tumblr

If any good comes of this, I hope it will make people realize depression is real.  This isn't something I take lightly.  I've helped two friends struggling with suicidal thoughts.  I called the police when one of them overdosed and had to be rushed to the hospital to have their stomach pumped.  I hope this will start some conversations that need to be had.  

Yesterday, the world lost one of the greats.  Rest in peace Robin.  We'll never have another friend like you.  °o°