Valerie Bertinelli is being candid about Eddie Van Halen’s death.
The 60-year-old actress went to Instagram Live on Friday to talk about her late ex-husband with therapist Angie Johnsey and cried as she remembered the rock star.
“We need the darkness to see the bright light, to see how light it can be,” said Bertinelli of the pain. “Without the darkness, we would never see the light – it is just there and you become insensitive to it. Therefore, the darkness makes us appreciate the light more.”
“You never like this new normal, but it is what it is,” said Bertinelli later, reflecting on Van Halen’s afterlife. “It’s about finding a way to survive this new normal … what a lot of people are doing. This whole year, unfortunately, has been about death and grief and loss.”
EDDIE VAN HALEN’S SON, WOLF, SHARES THE LATE STAR MOVING VIDEO SAYING THAT he ‘WOULD LOVE JAM’ WITH HIS FATHER ‘MORE’
Eddie Van Halen, known for his virtuoso guitar skills, died in October at the age of 65.
(Ebet Roberts / Redferns)
“A lot of people have lost a lot of things. This is just destroying what’s going on,” added the actress. “Talking about grieving is the right thing to do. We are all going through some form of it.”
“That’s the thing about grieving, it’s actually a bit of a blessing because – and I’ll just consider my relationship with Ed for the past 40 years – it was a complicated relationship,” she said. “We went through very difficult and challenging moments, but we also had beautiful moments.”
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“What is lovely about the grief and the gift it gives you is that it is much easier to remember the beautiful moments than the challenging and difficult moments we had with that person,” she continued. “These are beautiful things to hold on to and remember the best of who you are suffering from.”
Bertinelli then reflected on the ex-couple’s son, Wolfgang, and hopes that he will remember the best of her when she is gone.
Bertinelli and Van Halen have been married for 26 years. They separated in 2001 and finalized their divorce in 2007.
(Photo by Ron Galella / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
“I can only hope that when I leave, my son will remember the best of me and not the worst of me. I think it is something to hold on to, that the best of you will be remembered,” reflected Bertinelli.
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Bertinelli and Van Halen have been married for 26 years. They split in 2001 and divorced in 2007. Earlier this week, Bertinelli and Wolfgang honored Van Halen on what would have been his 66th birthday on Tuesday.
Van Halen, best known for his innovative tapping, virtuosic guitar technique and impeccable fragmentation, died at 65 in October.