Touched by an Angel - Quincy Jones

Touched by an Angel.. I had the honor of meeting him and spending a 2-1/2 hour lunch date with him in Beverly Hills at Mr. Chow's. It would've lasted longer, but Mr. Chow's kicked us out. (LOL) At that time, I lived in Las Vegas and was a Board member of Women In Film.

If it wasn't for Quincy Jones, there would be no "ABELLA—A Voice for the Voiceless." He planted the seed in me, which transformed into a historical fiction music audiobook with 26 spirituals, two music CDs, a Choral Book, shirts, posters, and more. It was the first of its kind. I was the author and narrator who performed, produced, and arranged the music and wrote original tunes.

As Quincy shared insight about the movie Roots, the music, and the author Alex Haley, I shared my memories of performing at two events honoring Alex Haley, once when he was alive and the other when he had passed. I talked about how I grew up learning spirituals and was from Annapolis, MD, where Kunta Kinte arrived on the slave ship. I shared how I contemplated writing about an enslaved girl who sang to honor the ancestors and how spirituals were the first songs I learned to sing.

He leaned his head to the side, nodding in approval, and said, 'Hmm..I can see that.' Then he said, 'If you can see it, you can be it.' As we shared some of our hardships, he looked, nodding his head, with a slight smile as if he could see my future, "Oh, you're going to be alright; you're going to do just fine," as he continuously nodded.

Pondering with puzzlement, I sat there a little confused about what he was visualizing as he spoke with me. Then, I realized he saw in me more than I could see in myself. He left me with so many words of wisdom and stories.. oh the stories that will be with me for a lifetime. He then gave me an autographed book and a CD collection of his music as a gift.

As I write this at 3 a.m., I'm crying tears of sadness, yet there is joy. I thank God for being touched by the "Music Angel, " Quincy Jones. I've been blessed in this lifetime to have had THREE music angels: Quincy, my friend, the late Skip Scarborough, and the gifted James 'Jim' Gardiner.

I could tell you so much more about that lunch date, but that's for my Memoirs. I thank God for the understanding of stepping out on faith and seizing the moment. And I'm thanking God for that beautiful day in Beverly Hills. RIP Master... Parris Lane