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You guys, I just found out Aaren, Bobby's second child and oldest daughter, has passed away from cancer. I know from having watched her Facebook page in recent years that she battled cancer hard and fearlessly. She loved both of her parents and even though she had very few memories of her dad, she honored his legacy the best way she knew how.
I was saddened earlier to think how I'm not sure she ever made it to Hart Island to see his grave. But that would only have been the next best thing to what she's seeing now--him in person. I truly believe he and Marilyn were there to welcome her, and maybe she had the chance to feel what it was like to be that little girl again, running into their arms.
I didn't really know Aaren, and admittedly didn't always understand her perspective on her dad's fans. It seemed very difficult for her to trust any of us. I think she and her family just had some very hurtful experiences over the years in regards to her dad's legacy and she felt very protective of his memory. The only way I was ever able to relate to it was knowing how I felt about my own daddy, who died five years ago. Fathers, for good or for bad, are so often a girl's first love. And I don't think it was any coincidence that she breathed her last around the very same time Bobby breathed his.
Aaren, this is to you. Rest happily ever after.
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I would definitely like to think that she is now at peace and reunited with her dad, who would also be at peace, in the Summerland as we pagans sometimes call it--no pain, no suffering, only love.
ReplyDeleteI stumbled onto this blog just tonight, as I was talking to a friend of mine on Facebook about the plight of child stars and Bobby came up--I shared his story as best I knew it.I'm so glad to see a site like this, to honor him and to help share his story. He deserved so much better than he got in his life.
First of all, I'm sorry for taking so long to respond to this! I'm grateful for Bobby's fans, like you, who do take time to come read his story and pay tribute to him :) The fans are definitely going to end up being the ones who keep his legacy alive, as no official tribute to him has been made yet.
DeleteRip :( I prayed for her.
ReplyDeleteThat is very kind. <3
DeleteThank you, Jessica!
DeleteI know Aaren was happy to be reunited with Bobby and Marilyn. I was sad to hear that Aaren had died. I came across her Facebook page and she has a lot in common with Bobby. She enjoyed art and writing poems just like her Dad. May they Rest in Peace.
ReplyDeleteVery well said <3
DeleteHer poetry was great. I had *very* brief interactions with her - as you mentioned, she had a strange relationship with her dad's fans. One day she would happily answer questions and then ghost you for long periods at a time. I'm saddened to read she's passed away.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think it was all very complicated for her I'm sure. I can't imagine having a father who was famous a long time ago, yet in the end, had very little legacy to leave by way of memories for her and certainly material possessions. It must have felt strange and surreal, and probably left her feeling conflicted at times.
DeleteAaren was my friend. She had a lot of trauma through her life and that's why she had issues trusting people. She always thought it was weird that people wanted to know about her dad (not in a weird way) she was just her own person. I'd like to think they're all reunited up there and she can be at peace because down here.. She definitely wasn't. RIP to my beautiful friend. Doesn't seem like it's been a year and a half.
ReplyDeleteI just want to thank you so much for coming here and shedding some light on Aaren. I am sorry she and her siblings went through this life battered and bruised by so much. It was probably difficult for her to feel tethered to her family, and I know she must have gone her whole life missing her dad. I feel very sure that if there was one thing Bobby could have chosen to do over again (other than the obvious, which affected everything: getting started on drugs), it would be leaving his children behind to pretty much fend for themselves. I know his heart was certainly not to have done that, as addiction causes people to do things that aren't "them". But still--Aaren, Kathy and Dan bore the collateral damage.
DeleteIt is my hope that they are making up for lost time in eternity. <3