A Frand Appreciation Post: In Loving Memory of Christina Grimmie RIP

We should let love and joy reign in our hearts. Love because she loved us all, we love her and she loved Jesus. Joy because there’s so much to be joyful about: her legacy – music, personality and faith. Joy, because she was a joyful person and she’s undeniably in the presence of our Lord.  

Christina was probably the best role model out there in Hollywood. She was not messed up unlike others. I remember her mainly for her talent in music (singing, playing musical instruments, writing songs), her hyper goofy wonderful personality, positive attitude, and most importantly – her FAITH.

First, I wish I had known her much earlier. You guys are lucky because you really got to enjoy her much longer than I do. That would be one of my biggest regrets in life. If you don’t know, I am an ultimate fan girl. So, I could have imagine that I would have been so crazy about her if I had known her years before. Unfortunately, I was not aware even when she visited the Philippines for a tour. Since it was October, it would have been a beautiful birthday gift for me to see her. Yet, I think it would have been hard because I live here in the province. But enough of me. Let’s talk about her and everything that we love about her. She inspired me to have a stronger faith in God, to love Jesus more, and to start playing piano again.

HER TALENT IN MUSIC With so many singers right now, Christina’s voice is actually very distinct. You would know that it is her voice. She could pull off different genres because her voice is that good. She was a LEGIT singer who sang LIVE and didn’t need auto tune to sound decent. She could hit those high notes so beautifully. Of course, she was also a great pianist, IMO. I can only wish that I could be as good as her but I think I wouldn’t be able to because she was just the best. Not to mention that she played the guitar and bass too. Oh, and she knew how to play the flute when she was younger. She also wrote and produced her own songs. She was that awesome and talented.

Let’s discuss our favorite songs of Christina. I love her original songs more than her covers in YouTube. I like ADVICE because it’s upbeat and very positive. I especially love the chorus “Love is all you need”. I also like UNFORGIVABLE for some strange reason. Of course, LIAR LIAR was also good. When it comes to her album With Love, I dig MY ANTHEM, I BET YOU DON’T CURSE GOD, MAKE IT WORK, WITH LOVE, and TELL MY MAMA. I wasn’t that much into MUST BE LOVE to be honest. SHRUG sounded really cool. With Side A, ANYBODY’S YOU, is my favorite besides SNOW WHITE and WITHOUT HIM. I super love her new sound. Her latest songs were more mature and different in a good way. The rap parts were amazing. I could just listen to them all day. Recently, I chose to listen to her upbeat songs like ADVICE and MY ANTHEM than her mellow slower ones… otherwise, I would just bawl my eyes out.

(Credit to the owner)

HER HYPER GOOFY WONDERFUL PERSONALITY Christina is such a joy to watch. I can imagine that it’s even much joyful to meet her in person. I especially love her Younow livestreams because she’s just so genuine and full of humility. Her impressions of Ellie Goulding, Celine Dion, Kourtney Kardashian, Pikachu and a monkey were so on point and hilarious. Her sense of humor was off the roof. You’d love her even more for that. Her expressions like “oh my word” “poop” “oh my gosh” “holy banana cream pie” “rawwk” “dude” "wootberries" were contagious. She could memorize and say the longest word in the dictionary. It’s so dope. I am inspired to do the same thing. I think the most hilarious videos that I could really watch over and over again at this state would be her ABOVE ALL THAT IS RANDOM series. I would smile all throughout and enjoy those videos, instead of being sad and teary-eyed. Her love for video games (most especially Zelda) was so endearing to guys or to everyone who share the same love for video games. It’s also so cute that she basically had crush on fictional guys and were in love with them (Link, L and Ken), not to mention she considered herself engaged to L and Ken at one point. She was into anime but she was shy to speak the Japanese that she had learned even though she knew what it meant. She was so scared of spiders and had a nightmare about it once. She loved chocolate and she mentioned that she could eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner or even when it’s not time to eat chocolate. She loved Christina Aguilera. Stacey Oricco was her first musical influence. She also had this mannerism where she would like touch or wipe her lower lip.

Her signature hair when she was just starting in Youtube had been her trademark. She had been changing her hair style since. She was not a girly-girl, for sure. In fact, she was boyish or one-of-the-boys. She wore classy dresses and high heels once in a while when the occasion needed it. She was as down-to-earth as you can get. Her style was simple.

Her wonderful personality made her more lovable to people. She was very loving and grateful. She would always say she loved her frands, friends and family. She was always thankful for their support and their presence in her life. She was charitable. She cared deeply about others. She was so kind. She just had this positive and good aura. She could be really hyper and cheerful. When I see the world and the people that existed before and those who are living now… Christina is definitely an angel who was too good for this world. She had to go home.

HER FAITH This is the most important legacy she had left in this world, in my opinion. Christina grew up in a church and she was definitely a devout Christian. It was not just about talk. She LITERALLY lived her life for Him. She loved Jesus so much. Her parents, closest friends and spiritual adviser would tell you the same thing. Almost everyone who knew her even those whom she was not really close to would again, tell you the same thing. The goodness that you saw in her was a product of her Christian faith. I remember when she said in one of her Younow livestreams that her faith is her whole life. It was not in vain. She was doing what she loved in her final moment. Her family and close friends know (and they have said) that she’s in a much better place now. As what her father put it, “She can’t be hurt anymore.” There’s no pain and misery in heaven. She’s enjoying it there, for sure. I bet she’s singing directly to the Lord now and they are probably having lunch everyday (she said in her Clevver TV interview that she would want to have lunch with Jesus).Though it is really hard for us to grasp this tragic reality that she’s not walking this Earth anymore, I take comfort and delight in knowing that until her final breath she held on to her faith and worded that she saw Jesus next (if some of the witnesses say is true, and her brother also mentioned this in her memorial service). Her vision of Christ is a telling sign for sure. She chose to go with Him. I would have chosen the same thing too. Who would not want to be?

Our life here is only temporary. We all know that we are all going to end back to dust. Our body is going to rot but the soul will not, at least for those who accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and lived a faithful life for Him. She’s more alive now than she ever was here. Through her faith, she had gained an eternal life in heaven. This is actually the greatest thing she could ever leave. Her music career was not just her passion. She used it in a way for it to also become her ministry. Her influence to those who share the same faith as hers would be immensely immeasurable. I, for one, is inspired to have a much stronger faith and love for Jesus. I strive to live a life for Him, the same way as Christina did. Though I don’t think I can ever reach that same level as hers.

She was raised very well by her parents. She had her conviction. She chose to live a good life. She didn’t stray from the righteous path. She stood up by being a role model who wasn’t messed up by fame. Her wisdom was beyond, compared to her age. It’s not just about her favorite bible verse. She knew the pitfalls of life and the evil that exist in this world but had preferred to dwell in the goodness of everything. It makes her innocent in a way, which is probably both a blessing and a curse. Her brother shared that during that night, she sort of welcomed the guy with open arms. She didn’t know his evil intention. As far as what everyone was aware of in that incident, he was just one of the fans who wanted to meet and take pictures with her. She was not a judgmental person. It was evident that she had no prejudice on who you are and what you look like. I personally think that just seeing the face of that guy, I would have known that he’s not normal. His grin in the picture of him released publicly definitely gives off a creepy crazy vibe. I would not trust that person in a bit. He should have been locked in a psychiatric hospital or something. Then, he would not have had managed to harm her.

IT’S NOT THE END. IT’S ONLY THE BEGINNING.

We should let love and joy reign in our hearts. Love, because she loved us all, we love her and she loved Jesus. Joy, because there’s so much to be joyful about: her legacy – music, personality and faith. Joy, because she was a joyful person and she’s undeniably in the presence of our Lord.  

"IT JUST BRINGS ME BACK TO EARTH WHEN I'M NOT."

 If you could have lunch anyone alive or dead, who would it be? "JESUS."

 *her O HOLY NIGHT cover

"THANK YOU JESUS."

"MY FAITH IS HUGE TO ME.... MY FAITH IS MY WHOLE LIFE."

"ALL IS VANITY. EVERYTHING IN THIS WORLD CAN BRING YOU DOWN IF YOU DON'T HAVE SOMETHING HIGHER TO BELIEVE IN WHICH IS ME AND MY FAITH IN CHRIST."

"AND THEN ABOVE ALL... ALL IS CONNECTED TO ONE - IT'S JESUS. IT SOUNDS CORNY BUT THAT'S HOW I LIVE."

"THAT'S WHY I GOT THIS TATTOO - ALL IS VANITY. SO, YEAH, KEEP GOD FIRST."

"AND ALL IS VANITY HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH ECCLESIASTES, WHICH IS A BOOK IN THE BIBLE, MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE."

"I'M A VERY STRONG BELIEVER. I GREW UP HAVING A BELIEF IN CHRIST AND I DO... IT'S A RELATIONSHIP FOR ME. I TAKE IT VERY SERIOUSLY."

'I'M NEVER REALLY THE KIND OF PERSON THAT WANTS TO SHOVE IT IN YOUR FACE... THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT I DON'T LIVE IT OUT COZ OBVIOUSLY I DO."

"I JUST SPEAK ON IT AND I JUST KINDA LEAVE IT UP TO GOD AT THAT POINT."

"I JUST DON'T WANNA GET SWALLOWED BY THE INDUSTRY... I JUST WANNA BE MYSELF."

"EVERYONE HAS SOME SORT OF EGO AND I THINK THE MORE YOU FEED THAT EGO YOU GET REALLY ARROGANT AND I NEVER EVER WANT THAT TO HAPPEN TO ME."

"THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONFIDENCE AND COCKINESS... CONFIDENCE AND ARROGANCE."

"EVERYTHING CAN MAKE YOU FULL OF JUST CONCEIT.... FULL OF THAT KIND OF PRIDE, IT NEVER LEADS TO ANYTHING GOOD. IT TAKES YOUR FOCUS OFF WHAT REALLY MATTERS IN LIFE."

"I ALWAYS BRING MY BIBLE EVERYWHERE."

"I LIKE MODESTY. I THINK MODESTY IS A BIG THING OF MINE. IT'S JUST THE WAY I WAS RAISED, I SUPPOSED, AND JUST HOW I AM."

"I DON'T LIKE POSING WEIRD WAYS TO BE SEXUAL AND STUFF... IT'S JUST NOT MY WAY."

"SO BEING A GOOD ROLE MODEL IS JUST SOMETHING THAT I JUST AM."

"I'M A VERY AWKWARD ROLE MODEL, THAT'S FOR SURE."

"THIS ONE MEANS A LOT TO ME, SUPER LOT TO ME. I'M A PROUD CHRISTIAN STANDING HERE TELLING YOU THAT I'M A CHRISTIAN."

"NOW, I GET TO STAND HERE TO SING IT LIVE FOR YOU GUYS."

*her cover of IN CHRIST ALONE

Here's the tribute video I made for her: