DANVILLE, Ky. (LEX 18) — Through all walks of life, one thing everyone can understand is music.
We do not necessarily take the same message from it, but the emotion we feel from a song or composition is the closest thing to a universal language we have.
Mike Rogers has been tapped into that dialogue for nearly seven decades, fluent in composing on piano keys.
"It's proven to be one of the most valuable things I've ever had," Rogers said.
"The best part of it is when I can sit down and melodies will come through my hands. It's a real gift. It's not simply something that you learn. It's something that learns you, helps you understand.”
Mike grew up in Danville, playing the piano since the age of six.
The 73-year-old has lived quite a life, from serving with the Marines in Vietnam to many years as a pastor in Bethlehem, Kentucky.
All of it with music lingering in the background.
Through multiple bouts with cancer, a heart attack that nearly required open heart surgery, diabetes, and Agent Orange's
effects.
When talking about how he's still here, Mike's answer is impossible to give without immense emotion.
"I don't know. I probably shouldn't be. My wife and I, we always thought I'd be the one to go," Rogers said.
Unfortunately, the universe went the opposite route a few weeks ago.
Mike's wife, Debi, passed away unexpectedly in July, ending a love song that started in high school and spanned 52 years of marriage.
"She's one of those, I call them saints if you want to call them that. Going God knows to all sides of the world with me and going through difficult times," Rogers said.
"It's not been easy for her and nobody knows what she's been through.”
Well, people are starting to find out.
A lot of people. Millions.
Mike's kids encouraged him to start a TikTok channel to share his music and love for his wife.
His videos garnered over two million views in just a couple of weeks, with people worldwide sharing their stories of heartbreak or simply thanking Mike for helping their hearts heal.
"I've always loved listening to my dad play the piano. My brother and I have heard these songs our whole lives," Mike's daughter, Summer Martin, said.
"I think it's insane how fast it's grown. It's amazing to see that his music that we've taken for granted for years has really connected with people all over the world.”
It's gotten to the point where people make their videos with Mike's piano as the music, an instrumental to their story.
All thanks to Mike and Debi.
"If the songs that I write now or that I wrote when we were younger, if in any way God can use that or people can be touched by it, that's good," Rogers said.
You can find all of Mike's work on TikTok; his channel is PianoMarineMike.
