“So You Think You Can Dance” choreographer Tyce DiOrio created an unbelievably moving dance routine for this week’s episode centered on a woman with breast cancer. The number was performed by Ade (pronounced Ah-day) and Melissa who danced so beautifully that everyone, including all of the judges, was moved to tears.

As was discussed collectively in comments from judges Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, Mia Michaels, and Ellen DeGeneres, just about everyone knows a woman who has been affected by breast cancer. So many of these women fight the fight to survive and keep trying to assure their loved ones that they will make it and that they should not worry about them. And as I sat and watched, I was so moved that I missed so much of the dance and the commentary that I had to wait and watch the piece over again. Thank heavens that I had recorded the show and although a number of friends had asked me whether I had watched the show, I explained that I hadn’t been able to do so and they alerted me that something very special had occurred and that they wanted to know what I thought about it once I had a chance to see it. But no one told me exactly what to expect.

I suppose that I was especially touched because I had just returned from a visit to my doctor earlier in the day for a pre-op exam and a trip to the lab for tests in advance of my fourth surgery in connection with my own breast cancer. The surgery is scheduled for Thursday, July 30th which is the two-year anniversary of the first day that I walked into my doctor’s office after having discovered a mass in my breast. It was after the discovery of cancer again just a little more than 4 months after my first surgery that my husband inspired me to write a weekly blog and to create this website where my main goal has been for others to come and write and share so that those who are fighting cancer, those who have become survivors and those who are the loved ones of both survivors and those who lost their battles know that we are here to help them and to let them know that we are all in this together.

I am so impressed that Tyce DiOrio was able to bring the world of dance together with the message of the devastation of breast cancer and the effect that it has on everyone who becomes a part of this story. The portrayal of the support that is provided by family and friends and caregivers to the cancer patient is one that cannot be overemphasized. There are absolutely no words that can ever be spoken or written to tell our supporters what they mean to us. I know from my own experiences that without my husband, my journey down this path may not have had such a successful outcome. So thank you to all of those involved who moved this story to the forefront through dance and to all of those of you who have written with your support and for those who have been inspired by the sharing of our individual stories. Standing together, we can truly all make a difference.

I’ve added the video for those who would love to watch it again. After you watch it, I would love to know how it touched you.

I would love your comment on how this beautiful dance touched you.

It’s not like me to show up at gatherings such as the memorial outside of the Michael Jackson’s family home. But because of the magnitude of the tribute being shown there, and the fact that I don’t live that far from their home, I thought I would share my personal experiences from the site. I hope that this helps to personalize this tribute a little bit more for those that could not be there in person.

Sorry about the quality of the video, but I took it with my phone. I hope you enjoy.

With the passing of Michael Jackson yesterday, I, along with just about everyone else I know, turned on the television to watch the coverage. Since new information was rather scarce in the first couple of hours of this breaking story, the first thing that I saw on most stations was the footage from his trial when charges of child molestation were brought against him along with images of how he was dressed, how he acted and just about everything else associated with his comings and goings to the court. This made me really angry.

Michael Jackson was acquitted of the charges brought against him in that case. He also had his reasons for settling the earlier case which does not automatically mean that he must have been guilty. Now if you have read any of my previous blogs or have seen my profile, you immediately know that one of my major platforms has to do with abuse as a result of my own situation. And for me, any abuse, mentally or physically against children, is horrific and must be stopped. However, I also believe that none of us has the right to judge anyone else with regard to things that did or didn’t happen unless we were an integral part of the experience.

For famous people like Michael Jackson, there are always those people who wish to create negative stories just to have their own fifteen minutes of fame or because they want to make money or because they are just plain jealous of someone else’s success. Just because someone has said something does not make it fact. I know that I have been the victim of false accusations in the past and I am sure that most people have had such an experience at one time or another in their lives. And it didn’t take long for others to spread the falsehood as fact and pass judgment accordingly.

I don’t know whether Michael Jackson was guilty of anything because I wasn’t there. I never met the man. Even as far as the court case is concerned, I didn’t hear the evidence and even then, I would have no way of knowing whether there was anything withheld or inserted that could have made a difference in the final outcome. In fact, it really is none of my business. It is the business of those who were directly involved or directly interacted with him.

As far as I am concerned, Michael Jackson and each of us have only to answer to ourselves at the end of the day. No matter what anyone else has to say, I believe that God is my one and only judge. I don’t believe that anyone else has the right to judge my actions anymore than I have the right to judge someone else. Michael left us yesterday to face his final judgment. It is my hope that he has finally found peace in that judgment.

I would love your comments.