CELEBRATING DIVERSITY

My journey in music has taken me to many places, one being a burn camp for children in Northern California. It is a place where kids with severe burn scars come together every year. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.

One day at the burn camp I saw two boys, about ten years old, fighting. I stopped them.
"What happened? Why are you fighting?" 

"He called me black," one little boy said in anger.

"You are black," I responded. "And there is nothing wrong with that! But if you fight about it you are saying that there is. When someone calls you black just say thank you and be proud of it." Then I hugged him and told him I loved him.

Then there's the politically correct Thing. This wears me out. I never understood why they took that cute little Chihuahua out of the Taco Bell commercials. I loved that little dog. "Yo quiero Taco Bell." (I want Taco Bell) BRILLIANT! That commercial always made me hungry for a burrito. 

I say let's celebrate cultures. Who doesn't like a good taco or enchilada? Taking the Chihuahua dog out of the commercial says Mexican is not OK. So should a golden retriever be in the commercial? Would that make it politically correct? PLEASE!

My Tita was born in Chihuahua, Mexico. She was my grandmother. I loved my Tita and still do. I wish I could cook like her and make her Spanish rice. Every day Tita would have her "copita" at 4pm (tea time). Many times it was a glass of Jose Cuervo gold tequila with salt and lime and some snacks. Jose Cuervo you are a friend of mine was the number one country song of the year in 1983. I wrote it. Thank God I have that Mexican blood in me. The song just would not have been the same if it was about beer, wine, scotch, gin, whiskey or even moonshine. I owe my songwriting success to my Mexican heritage and my Tita. That makes me proud. I always tell my Mexican friends, "I'm in the club!" These days I am working on speaking Spanish better.

To understand something it is best to look at its opposite. Wonder if all of us were the same race, spoke the same language, ate the same food, listened to the same music, wore the same uniform, had the same hairstyle, had the same ideas and so on? We might as well be robots. BORING!! 

And then there's the religion thing. One day at Curves I got into a conversation with a Hindu woman. "Tell me about your religion," I asked her. She started talking about love and brotherhood and all kinds of beautiful things. "Really?" I commented. "Maybe I'm Hindu." She even invited me to her temple.

Now Jesus... he had the right idea! He loves everyone! He told us that we are ALL brothers and sisters. I don't think he would have ever participated in the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition or joined the Ku Klux Klan even though they call themselves Christians. Personally, I am all about LOVE just like Jesus. And what about those forms where you check off your race? I always check OTHER (if they have it) and then write in the word HUMAN.

I say, "Viva la difference!" Diversity makes the world more interesting. Embrace it! It makes life a lot more fun to live in harmony and celebrate our differences. Have you ever been in the Its a Small World ride at Disneyland? Now that's what I'm talking about.

If you haven't experienced the ride here it is, Christmas 2015. It makes me smile. LOVE TO ALL!

3 STAGES OF SANTA CLAUS

It was two weeks before Christmas and we were in our kitchen in Hendersonville, Tennessee. Jordan was about twelve years old.

Earlier that year I had been visiting my oldest daughter, Julie, who lived in France. It was Easter and unfortunately their dad wasn’t plugged in well enough to remember the Easter Bunny. No chocolate bunnies, eggs or jelly beans showed up. What happened to the magic bunny in the full moon? It was devastating.

The kids expressed genuine concern. Maybe it was time. At twelve and thirteen they quickly figured out that the Easter Bunny only shows up if Mom’s around. To this day if any of my children are home you can be sure the Easter Bunny is probably going to show up.

It was December and I was in the kitchen cooking dinner when Jordan walked in. Apparently he was concerned that maybe Santa Claus was going to pull a “no show” as well.

“I just can’t wait for Santa Claus to show up this year, Mom. I love Santa Claus! He always brings me cool presents. I just can’t wait!”

I smiled. Pretty clever I thought. I knew Jordan knew the real deal. After all he was growing armpit hair. I guessed it was time to set the record straight.

“Jordan,” I said. “There are three stages of Santa Claus.

“The first stage is for small children. You hear the story about elves, the North Pole, reindeer and coming down the chimney. It’s a beautiful story and a wonderful tradition.

“The second stage, you learn that the reindeer, chimney, elf and North Pole story are a little exaggerated. Then you develop your own ideas about Santa.

“The third stage, YOU ARE SANTA CLAUS.”

Merry Christmas to all my friends! 

Here's a fun, country two-steppin' song I wrote and recorded with a group of wonderful children in East Texas who are all grown up now and have babies of their own. KWKH played it first. To date there have been over 48,000 listens.

THE LEGEND OF DOLPHINNY

When I grew up in Redondo Beach we never saw dolphins. Then strangely enough, one day they started visiting our hometown. The timing was a strange coincidence that my family has come to call, “The Legend of Dolphinny.”

My brother Kurt had a beautiful German-shepherd. Her name was Daphne. Kurt loved her and took her everywhere he went. Daphne was crazy about Kurt. In fact she was kind of possessive. When Kurt would bring dates to the house, Daphne used to crawl up in his lap to make the young woman understand she was the lady in his life. This had a tendency to cramp his style.

Daphne

Daphne loved the beach and Kurt took her down just about every day. When Kurt went away to college, Daphne became Mom and Dad’s dog. If you are a dog person you know what I mean when I say, “Our family loved her so much.”

Then one very sad day it was time to say goodbye to Daphne. Daddy cried for weeks. Mom and Dad waited for Kurt to come home from college on a visit before they took her ashes and threw them into the ocean at Knob Hill beach. A few weeks after ceremony we began to see dolphins show up at Knob Hill beach on our walks by the ocean. Mom would say, “Look! Daphne is now Dolphinny and she has brought her friends!”

Some people might call it a coincidence. That’s OK. Einstein said “Coincidence is God being anonymous.”

Dolphins are beautiful friends. When I sing to them under the water I can usually hear them sing back.

Whenever I see dolphins dancing in the surf, I like to say, “Hello, Dolphinny. Thanks for bringing your friends by to say hi." It just makes me feel better.

STRAWBERRIES

Once there were three small strawberry gardens that were planted in three separate rooms.

In the first room the strawberry plants were watered and given plenty of sunlight. Beautiful, red healthy strawberries grew on the plants and they were tasty and sweet.

In the second room, the strawberry plants were watered and given plenty of sunlight. In this room a prayer was said every day over the strawberries. “Dear Lord, Please let these strawberries grow as big as plums!” Sure enough, the beautiful, red strawberries grew as big as plums and they were tasty and sweet.”

In the third room, the strawberry plants were watered and given plenty of sunlight. In this room, every day, four words were said over the strawberries. “Thy will be done.”

The strawberries grew as big as peaches and they were bright red, juicy and delicious!”

Have you ever wondered if you are praying correctly? I know I have.

When Jesus was asked, “Teach us to pray,” Jesus taught us the perfect prayer. “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.”

God already knows our deepest desires and God will always give the best outcome. Just like a good parent, God knows what is best for our spiritual growth. This does not always align with what we want. Just remember through it all, God loves you so much!

When you say, “Thy Will be done,” you are telling God you totally trust whatever happens. God knows what’s best for your soul. That which brings us closer to knowing God is always the greatest outcome.

Your prayers will always be answered. Be patient and know everything is on God’s time.

In the meantime count your blessings and be thankful. I am sure God appreciates appreciation. Appreciation and gratitude are the highest vibration in the universe and acts as a magnet to more blessings.

Then, when you are feeling the joy from your blessings, look to the heavens and shout, “Thank you God! If this is like heaven it will be just fine!”

I promise, God will hear you and smile.

BAGGER VANCE and THE FIELD

Have you ever had a burst? For me a burst is a moment of inspiration that is so profound that you get chill bumps, shake, shudder and tears instantly burst from your eyes.The first time I ever saw the movie, Bagger Vance I had a "burst" so many times that I went back to the theater a few days later to count them. There were 8. 

When our son, Jordan was in the first grade we put him in Little League. Unfortunately he was on the “Charlie Brown” team. After three seasons of almost no wins Jordan became very discouraged and frustrated. “We never win, Mom. I’m not having fun,” he said one evening after a 12 to zero ballgame.

“Why don’t you try golf,” I said. That’s a game where you play all by yourself.”

With that, we bought Jordan a set of golf clubs. He began by hitting a bucket of balls from the house to the barn, 400 feet away. As Jordan grew older he joined the Hendersonville High School golf team in Tennessee and was named “Golfer of the Year” in his senior year. We watched Bagger Vance before every competition.

Through the years, when Jordan would leave the house to practice, I would press the palms of my hands together, bow and say, “Ahh little Grasshopper, remember you are the ball, you are the club, you are the hole, you are the field of green grass.”

I don’t really know why I said it, I just did.

One day, when he was about twelve-years-old Jordan finally looked at me and said, “What does that mean anyway, Mom?”

 “What happens when you blow everything up a million times?” I asked. “What do you see?”

“Empty space,” he replied.

“Ahh little Grasshopper , it is there you are one with the ball, one with the club, one with the hole and one with the field of green grass.”

“Oh. Now I get it,” he said with a great big smile. “Bye Mom!”

I'm really not that smart. All you have to do is listen. God will always give you the answer.  Now listen to Bagger Vance tell Junuh about "the field."

AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE

It was January 18^th 2003. My daughter Denise had had an accident and was on life support. I learned later her doctor had told the nurses to call when she had passed, She was not expected to live.

I brought a CD player and put my Quiet Journey CD on and told the nurse to make sure it played continuously. I wanted my baby to know her Mommy was with her.

God gave us a miracle that day. I’ll never forget the first thing my daughter Denise said to me when she woke up from her coma. She was only seventeen and the words she said changed my life forever. It was so beautiful I quickly wrote them down so I wouldn’t forget.

“O Mama! I saw the most beautiful light. All I could do is look at it. I had no thoughts. It was so beautiful there are no words that can even describe it. There was only love and I couldn’t stop looking at it. It felt like a warm blanket of only love wrapped around me. Mommy, the light is all around us, people just can’t see it.”

It was 3 o’clock in the morning. As she spoke to me her eyes were filled with light. Her doctor didn’t expect her to ever wake up again. It was because of this experience I have learned to completely trust God. I have the complete knowing that all things are possible with God.  "I knew I wasn't dead, Mommy because I could hear your music playing."

Some people might say what Denise experienced was only a dream. I know a few people who have had similar experiences. Most of them keep it to themselves because it is so sacred and a reaction of disbelief saddens them. 

I for one like to make people feel safe to share their beautiful story and I have heard some good ones. Some floated over their bodies. Others saw a tunnel of bright light and saw loved ones who have passed on. All of them expressed a feeling of peace like nothing they ever experienced before.

God is always with us. We are never alone. As Denise told me about her journey to the light the peace in that hospital room  was like no other I have ever experienced in my lifetime.

Sometimes I am reminded of my daughter's beautiful words. “Mommy, the light is all around us, people just can’t see it.” It really makes me feel good.


UPDATE: I posted this blog at 5:28 am PST. My cousin Sherry passed today at 4:11 pm.
Sherry is dancing in heaven with her new body :)

EASY TORTILLA SOUP FEEDS A BIG GROUP

Have you ever had something delicious at a restaurant and then tried to make it at home. I did! It took me 6 times to get it right but now I am proud to say I make a wonderful Tortilla Soup. It inexpensively feeds a lot of people and you will be a hero with your friends. Perfect for a party!

Tortilla Soup
3 to 4 skinless chicken breast
1 heaping cup of white rice (brown is ok)
4 to 5 large carrots (chopped into circles)
1 onion (yellow, I use medium to large)
5 to 6 teaspoons of  Knorr's Caldo de Tomate con pollo
(if you can't find it use chicken bouillon)
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can of Rotel

Boil chicken and remove the meat. Pull chicken apart so it is shredded. Add remaining ingredients to broth and add water (it's kind of a guess, 4 to 5 cups depending on how much broth you have) Bring to a boil then put it on MED for about 20 minutes. Add chicken and simmer on LO for an hour so all the flavors can mix. (If too thick add a can of chicken broth, more tomatoes or a little water)

Put out a bowl of tortilla chips, sliced avocados, shredded mexican cheese, green chili salsa, jalapenos and sour cream. Crunch the tortilla chips and garnish with favorite toppings. YUMMY!! 

Note: The Knorr's Caldo de Tomate con pollo is the secret ingredient. I also use it in vegetable soup.