So I have a secret.
I had somewhat of a sheltered childhood. Music was a love of mine growing up. I was in the church choir every year. And I loved music in general. But the selection of music that I was privy to was very limited. Smooth Jazz. Yes, I was only permitted to listen to Smooth Jazz until I was in 10th grade. That's my secret. Now, I loved the local smooth jazz channel. Kenny G, Sade, Anita Baker, Toni Braxton, Whitney Houston and even Brandy were played. There were times when at slumber parties or just out with friends I'd get a taste of TLC, Monica, No Doubt, Blink 182, Green Day or Incubus. But I still loved my Smooth Jazz. You might ask, didn't you just sneak and buy music that everyone else was listening to (Jodeci, IMX, Eve, etc)? Well...no. I grew up in a household led by a strong Black woman from the south.
Plus, I grew up in a time where you feared your parents. LOL!
And again, I loved jazz. I wasn't curious about anything promoting drugs, sex and violence. Jazz was much more peaceful and kept me focused on life and adventure. All of this is to say: my favorite artist became Anita Baker. I loooooved to sing and my voice was deeper than average, like hers. I've thought about running into her here in Detroit a time or two, or five. Then a couple of weeks ago I got a text from tyi3284 telling me that she had a surprise performance at the African World Festival (on the day I decided not to go). I was cooking dinner then and cried. I'm not ashamed to admit that.
I tried to forget about missing a chance to see her (this would have been my 4th time).
Yesterday I drove to the Apple store to exchange my phone due to a defective camera.
Divine intervention took place, here's how:
1. I left work an hour later than usual.
2. The Apple Store had no available appointments, but I went anyway to try and fit into a cancelled or no-show appointment.
3. For the FIRST time I parked on the opposite side of the mall I usually park on.
4. I took the escalator, when I ALWAYS take the elevator.
5. I passed Anthropologie instead of going in, trying to stay focused on the task at hand.
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