Shannon Tavares (In Memorial) The Lion King

(CLEVELAND) - Broadway Actress Shannon Tavares, who performed in “The Lion King”, who was 11-years old, died Monday after losing a battle with leukemia.

Shannon was known for her immense talent and also revered by so many youngsters who hope to find a meaningful role in the entertainment world.

After experiencing lower back and leg pain, Shannon was diagnosed last April with acute myeloid leukemia, which is also known as AML.

AML causes a rapid and abnormal growth of white blood cells in the bone marrow, interfering with the normal blood cell production.

Then I see this. Sad & happy at the same time. In my heart I find sadness for her parents, and I am reminded at the same time how much I enjoy looking at my daughter year after year after year.

The seemingly abrupt loss of Shannon Tavares is a reminder to all of us that we should treasure and appreciate what we have.

Some people are not able to live out their lives with those who are most precious to them.

Shannon Tavares (In Memorial) The Lion King

She was a youthful actress, exuberant, she would dance and sing,
Dead! “Acute myeloid leukemia” deleted her role in, “The Lion King,”
“Broadway Princess” acclaimed stellar performance in her own right,
The tender innocent age of 11, she battle valiantly but lost her fight.

April, the month of Easter Sunday, the Resurrection would change,
Faces of the world, salvation, snow would melt, the verge of Spring,
Plant the seed, plowing, harvest in mind, the birth of flowers bloom,
All this growth in mind for Shannon Tavarez it ended much too soon.

Repentance! For this pre-teen age girl wasn’t she much to young?
To have committed any evils that would cause her life to be done?
Matthew 19:13-15, Jesus talks about children, kingdom of heaven,
Doctors even preachers don’t know why death creeps in at just 11.

A beginning to an unexplained end, arrived, departed, with a smile,
She began feeling pain in her lower back and legs yet all the while,
Brave! Her story drew attention of numerous celebrities far & wide,
A desperate donor search, to no avail, succumbing, she has died.

Father I ask, why do the tender, pure in heart, so early have to go?
While the sinners multiply like fine crystals as rocky mountain snow,
Such a talented gift rained upon her life could only be from You, so?
Many unexplained early departures like Alliyah, one day we’ll know,

Harlem School of the Arts for vocals, piano & started singing age 3,
Wowing producers her first open audition for, “Nala” it’s no mystery,
Young Nala with Young Simba sang, “I Just Can't Wait to Be King,”
Sorry Shannon, you’ll have to settle for being a, “Kingdom Queen.”

By Luke Easter

Luke Easter is a poet who writes about things that are very close to the heart of Salem-News.com. Another former U.S. Marine, Luke explained what drives him to try to heal the world with an approach that reaches people on a different level, one known for centuries, yet too often forgotten in the one we live in.

We live in a world of social & economic injustice. The main reason for founding America in the first place was to relieve the oppression of the King of England. Patrick Henry said it best, “give me liberty or give me death.” And yet, all too often death seems to be the only way out. Why is there such a high suicide rate especially among teens, in the land of the free & the home of the brave? What makes headlines? Good news? Ha! More depressing stories than anything else. I feel poetry takes an edge off the hurt of bad news while still delivering it but in a, “glitzy” sort of way. Giving a different perspective. Kind of like slap in the face as opposed to a knife in the back. At least with the slap you’ll live to see another day and you will know whom it’s from. I wasn’t here for the beginning of the world but at 59, I just might be here for the end.

Even though it’s still a knife, rhyme poetry helps to dull the blade. And that’s my job. You can write to Luke Easter at: lyricsfromlucas@aol.com