Thank you for the memories, Michelle Kwan.
For all the fields of gold you’ve taken us through.
Now rest, sweetie, rest.
And we’ll wait to see where you go next.
I will remember Michelle for the journey she has taken me on these past twelve years, culminating in her most emotionally stunning skate, the Salt Lake City exhibition skate to Fields of Gold. Watch it here by clicking on the Fields of Gold Gala link in the 2002 Olympic section.
There were tears of joy on her face the last half of the skate. There were tears of joy on ours. The commentators were silenced by tears.
“Success isn’t always measured by a gold medal.” Peggy Fleming commented as the crowd roared.
Success is about the heart. It is about the journey. It is about beauty and strength, and the excellence of that combination. It is about how one shares one’s heart, excellence and beauty.
This is the lesson that Michelle taught us, and it will be her legacy.
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HeatherW has created a tribute to Michele’s Fields of Gold Program here.
Here is an excerpt:
“Fields of Gold is arguably Michelle’s most beautiful and inspiring programs. Choreographed by Sarah Kawahara, it is Michelle’s exhibition program during the 2001/02 season. After the Olympics, some say that Fields of Gold, known among fans as “FOG,” is a bittersweet program. But FOG has nothing to do with Gold, as in a gold medal. The program is a tribute to lost lives and unfulfilled dreams, and about Michelle’s love for the sport of skating. FOG debuted at “A Skating Tribute: The Legacy of the 1961 US World Figure Skating Team,” an event which honored the 18 skaters and coaches who perished on their way to the 1961 World Championships.”
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Fields of Gold, Written by Sting (Sung by Eva Cassidy in the Kwan performance)
You’ll remember me when the west wind moves
Among the fields of barley
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky
When we walked in fields of gold
So she took her love for to gaze awhile
Among the fields of barley
In his arms she fell as her hair came down
Among the fields of gold
Will you stay with me will you be my love
Among the fields of barley
And you can tell the sun in his jealous sky
When we walked in fields of gold
I never made promises lightly
And there have been some that I’ve broken
But I swear in the days still left
We will walk in fields of gold
We’ll walk in fields of gold
I never made promises lightly
And there have been some that I’ve broken
But I swear in the days still left
We will walk in fields of gold
We’ll walk in fields of gold
Many years have passed since those summer days
Among the fields of barley
See the children run as the sun goes down
As you lie in fields of gold
You’ll remember me when the west wind moves
Among the fields of barley
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky
When we walked in fields of gold
When we walked in fields of gold
When we walked in fields of gold
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This one’s for MommaK, from my backyard. Sorry, no snow.
