My Kurt Cobain Pilgrimage To Aberdeen
On February 20th, 1967 in the small Washington town of Aberdeen, a young man by the name of Kurt Donald Cobain made his debut appearance into this world. His road in life would lead him, along with bassist Krist Novoselic and drummer Dave Grohl, to global superstardom. The Seattle “grunge” scene was able to take dominance over the musical scene at the time due to the collective of these three core members, collectively known as Nirvana.
The path Kurt walked, however, was ultimately and untimely cut short by his own hand on April 5th, 1994 at the very young age of 27. Since his passing many fan’s of Kurt’s music have taken a trek to the place of his birthday to see his childhood home as well as his memorial park. On what would’ve been his 58th birthday today during a Work Force Block of Kurt’s music, I am reminded of when I made that journey.
Aberdeen: “Come As You Are”
Much like a vast majority of “Fine Villages” as Pierre would say across the country, the small costal town of Aberdeen, Washington has a road sign welcoming travelers to their town. Usually they’re accompanied by a motto or slogan and, quite fitting, Aberdeen’s message honors its most famous resident. A nod to a very welcoming Nirvana track, the town invites you to “Come As You Are”.
After striking the most zen-ful yoga pose I know (and the only one i know incidentally) I started to notice all the loving messages people have technically graffitied on the many signs and objects in the town. I was struck by the message of love utilizing the sign itself
Kurt Cobain’s Childhood Home
A short drive past the welcome sign of Aberdeen leads you to a very residential and quite neighborhood. I distinctly remember how overcast and dreary it was on that October day that I visited. I also vividly remember that despite the quiet, somber nature of the surroundings there was a charm that only a small town could give off.
And after walking a few of those small town roads, I stumbled upon East 1st Street and came across a beige home that looks like somewhere grandmom could live. But the domicile at 1210 E 1st Street contained Kurt’s formative years.
Kurt Cobain Memorial Park
Just a few steps past Kurt’s childhood home was a memorial park the town of established to honor the late Nirvana icon. With the exception of one person leaving when I arrived, the only people physically at the park during my visit were myself and my Seattle based friend whom I was in town visiting. But we were far from alone as there were so many messages left behind who wanted to pay their respects.
While it can be so very easy to get lost in the sadness of Kurt Cobain’s passing, the overarching theme that I felt leaving this park and this town was hope. And it was all thanks to one particular message someone had scrawled on a park bench. Some anonymous individual was so profoundly moved that they just wrote “Don’t give up”.
It is certainly a potent message that needs to be heard from time to time. The power of music can do incredibly remarkable things. If you yourself are going through some difficult times and need some mental health assistance you can find that here or simply call the crisis hotline by dialing 9-8-8.
