Even though we watched Whitney Houston deal with her personal struggles over the years which included an unhealthy, abusive marriage to Bobby Brown and alcohol and drug addiction, the news of her death this week was shocking to many of us. It has been reported that her longtime bodyguard found her unconscious body submerged in the bathtub in her hotel room in Beverly Hills shortly before she was supposed to perform at a pre-Grammy party held by her mentor Clive Davis. Perhaps, despite the fact that it was brewing for some time, we didn't see it coming because she had endured so much, soldiered on through so much adversity already, and was moving toward a comeback, so we had attributed a certain invincibility to her. 

Despite all that we know or don't know about her difficult situation, it is hard to imagine that the woman who was so bright, beautiful, and mesmerizing met such a harsh end. Celebrities really have two sides to them: one professional and one personal. Whatever Whitney couldn't achieve on the personal side she surpassed on the professional level. So even though we have watched her career unravel and her health decline, when most people think of her they see her in their minds in top shape—in The Bodyguard or singing I Will Always Love You. It is that colossal talent and voice that many associate with her, not her personal fight for happiness, and it is exactly that which those who don't know her mourn.