Visiting Selena

I normally do not give celebrity level to anyone.  Celebrities are people, humans like you and me.  There are only a few people maybe less than a hand full in my book that can be that level to me.  One of these people is Selena.  Selena Quintanilla was the Tejano Queen that was taken too early.  She was a star but not like a reality star.  Selena was someone we, Hispanic girls, could look up to.  Selena was only 7 years older than me.  I love her music, style, and person she was.  I saw in concert many times.  I never got to be that up close and personal with her but she always made me feel like I knew her.  I still remember the day she was shot.  I was on my way home from school.  We heard the news on the bus.  I ran home crying.  As I am writing, I'm crying.  Like I said, she was taken too soon.  She wasn't a relative, but I have visited her grave more times than anyone else.  Years ago, I visited but never got to capture the moment.  So on Spring Break, we made a pit stop to pay our respect and share this place with our kids. 

Corpus Christi has a beautiful memorial that anyone can visit.  It is free.  Right of the water.  Peaceful!  Many visit everyday, all day. 

This is where Selena's body rests.  I remember the first time I came to the cemetery we cried.  All my friends and I were huge fans.  We cried as if we personally knew her.  I do not remember this place having a fence and a barricade but I can see why it would need to be blocked off.  Just in the few moments we were there, many others showed up.  Some of the same people we had seen at the memorial earlier.   

We got to Corpus too late for us to visit the Selena Museum.  I have never been in there.  I visited the boutique years ago and was hoping to see it again.  But come to find out it closed many years ago. 

Selena, the movie, is one of the only movies I can watch over and over and not get tired of watching.  I can hear her music on replay all day long, I did.  When I was in high school, that is all I listened to. 

I wanted to share this with my kids and my husband.  He had never been to either spot.  My kids may know of Selena as one of mom's childhood memories.  They have watched the movie with us and know her story.  Tejano music is not as popular as it once was but it is part of our culture.  It is important to me that our kids know their culture, share their heritage, and remember where we all come from.  That is one of the main reasons why I love Selena and what she represents for me.  Stayed true to herself, ate pizza like it was nobody's business, and sang her heart out but she loved to sing.  And I love to sing her music even if I can hold the right tune.  I loved her beautiful smile and contagious laughter. 

Selena Vive!  Selena lives, forever in our hearts!