The Bolton Challenge

One sunny day when I was about 10, I walked into the living room and a white man wearing an old white t-shirt, faded jeans, and a denim cap over long blonde hair was on tv. He was seated on a simple old wooden stool holding a microphone, with nothing and no one else on stage. I remember standing there completely mesmerized by his performance, and reading his name at the end of the concert - Michael Bolton. It was'nt that he was cute (and that he was) but I had never seen anyone with so much passion for what he was doing. He had such confidence, such ease, so much joy and he looked so fulfilled! Watching him, I felt like he loves his music so much that he would play it and sing whether we watched it or not, and whether we liked it or not. At that moment, I began to understand and pursue greatness, not as we know it, but as it was created to be. That we know and understand who we are and why we were created, that we believe in the task we were born to fulfill regardless of the value the world places on what we were called to do, that we realise our impact on others lives, and that we give of ourselves wholeheartedly to what we believe is our purpose.
Fast forward to a few years later; without knowing how significant this moment was to me, Billy (my loving, simple and very very handsome half) calls me up from his office this Wednesday and nonchalantly says to me "I got tickets to a Michael Bolton concert Friday.. would you like to go?" WOULD I LIKE TO GO???? - it was only in my 99 (or was it 101) "things I had to do before I die" list.
After much anticipation, we went to the concert at the River Rock last night and Looooooord he did not disappoint! From the red roses for all the ladies as we were walking in, to the intimate setting (there were only about 400 seats in this show), to the well choreographed lighting, and the large entourage of accompanying musicians - it was PERFECT. Definitely one of the best, if not the best two hours I have ever had in this lifetime. He performed from Boston swings Sinatra, and of course vintage songs. The first time I heard of his new CD I thought it was too ambitious but he pulls it off exquisitely. The crowd l-o-v-e-d him, asking him to come back for one more song at the end (which he graciously did). Ironically, at one point during the show he stopped abruptly and announced "i'm just gonna change out of this suit"; a few minutes later a spotlight goes on in the audience and there he is... Michael Bolton...in faded jeans and a white shirt. He sang his way down the the stage where he proceeded to sit on... you guessed it... a simple old wooden stool! (i'm so convinced it was a sign).
Its a long way from a dusty, play obsessed, wide eyed, 10 year old, black, African girl with corn rows and no shoes, to a grown up professional who wears her shoes (well most of the time anyway!). If you have ever watched Bolton live you will understand when I say - the man is passionate about what he does. I dont know why that moment came to mean as much as it did to me, but I know that from that moment I have always asked myself - what would Michael Bolton have been if he never picked up a microphone? Thank God we never have to find out. Have the courage to be who you were created to be.
Wasiwasi