X-Series: Kasey (Dazzler)

This is part of an ongoing series in which I am honoring my family in my own nerdy way. You can read the introduction for context. The information in each post was originally shared on Thanksgiving at the Tribal DMx 2020. The shadowboxes and art were done by Tom and Clayton at The Collector’s Outpost. Thank you Tom and Clayton! Thanks even more to Karen, Dakota, Kadin and Kasey who have fulled my life with love, joy, peace, adventure, fun and so much more.

To my daughter Kasey –

Kasey, you are so much like Dazzler and you don’t even know it!  For years you wanted to be the Silver Surfer and I searched all Marvel, X-Men and Fantastic Four crossovers to try to manipulate a way that you could be the Silver Surfer.  Eventually that effort was exhausted and I tried to gently sway you to take on the Dazzler persona.  With the help of your brothers and mom in a casual Tribal meeting through text, you agreed that Dazzler was your gal.  I’m so glad you did.  Let me share with you the many ways you and her are alike.

• Dazzler has the mutant ability to convert sound into light energy.  For years she tried to hide it.  When she did her concerts, as she is a rock star, she used her abilities to create amazing light shows.  She told people that she a a secret pyrotechnics technology that made her concerts awesome.  Like Dazzler, you often hide your incredible talents.  You don’t push your talents on others and never brag about the abilities the Lord has given you.  Sometimes we have to work hard to get you to step into the spotlight and when you do, oh man, it’s incredible!  Even Mrs. Gardner, your drama teacher, who acted on Broadway, spent a few years trying to convince you to take the lead role in her theater productions.  And when you did, wow! Kasey your genuine humility is straight from the Lord and you represent Him well with your quiet, unassuming lifestyle.  What a gift to have humility along with your great talents!
• Dazzler is a highly skilled athlete, and has become a good hand-to-hand combatant thanks to her training with the X-Men.  You got your mother’s athletic genes. Baseball, basketball and yes, even in running, you are a natural.  You played basketball for the first time ever in 5th grade in a weekend tournament.  Your team won first place and you were a huge part of that happening.  Later, still with no real training, you joined the junior high basketball team and displayed so much natural talent that your coach and his parents and others kept congratulating us as parents and commented on your talent.  At four years old you were able to hit 3 out of 5 baseballs pitched to you, with an aluminum bat!  While I have tried to get you to run, you have resisted, and that’s just fine, Kasey.  Just know you have a natural running form and are really stinking fast!  Pursue it someday if you desire, but there’s no shame in saying, “dad, I have so many athletics genes, I’m going to let the running ones rest…forever…I’ll use other ones.”  For sure, you’ll use those genes during the Zombie Apocalypse.  Eric Liddel, who was a follower of Jesus and really really fast once said, “When I run, I feel the pleasure of God.”  Kasey, as you use your athletic ability in whatever way God leads you, you will feel His pleasure because He gave you those abilities and like your parents, He loves watching you use them.
• Dazzler was originally conceived as a joint venture between Marvel and Casablanca Records. Marvel was going to publish the comic and Casablanca was going to put out an album and a movie starring Bo Derek. Marvel released the comic, but Casablanca removed itself from the project and the album and movie never saw the light of day.  Small note: for years, your mother has been told she looks just like Bo Derek!
• Dazzler is so powerful that her energy signature alerted the cosmic entity Galactus and he kidnapped her as a means of retrieving his renegade herald, Terrax. Galactus imbued Dazzler with the Power Cosmic, a source of unlimited sound energy, allowing her to enter a black hole to retrieve the herald. Dazzler succeeded in her task and compassionately convinced Galactus to pardon Terrax and return her to Earth. Dazzler had the same powers as the Silver Surfer!  That should make you super happy!  You basically get to be Dazzler and Silver Surfer.  And notice that she would have stayed kidnapped by Galactus but she compassionately convinced him to let her go.  You have that same compassion and gentleness with others.  Friends and non-friends have sought you for comfort and companionship.  You are so friendly and kind.  If Galactus existed in real life, you too would be able to convince him with your kind, gentle demeanor.  You are just like Jesus too when you love others the way you do.
• Researchers found that Alison (Dazzler) has no natural limit to her abilities and, theoretically, could have been the most powerful mutant on Earth, with unlimited energy potential. Despite the limits of her sound conversion ability being unknown, she was capable of absorbing unimaginable sounds, including the explosion of an entire galaxy, to boost her to sufficient levels when exposed by Galactus to travel into a black hole on its behalf. She also demonstrated she could absorb the sonic waves of Black Bolt’s devastating voice. Kasey, just like Dazzler, you have unlimited potential in Jesus!  The world has yet to see what God will do with the amazing gifts He has given you!  

Your mother and I cannot wait to see all the amazing things God does through you using your musical, dramatic, and athletic talents combined with your compassion and kindness.