Music Therapy with Miss Moon

"Only through our connectedness to others can we really know and enhance the self. And only through working on the self can we begin to enhance our connectedness to others."
~ Harriet Goldhor Lerner

In a world where people are so vastly different from each other, it can be difficult to acknowledge what connects us sometimes... our lives. We all strive to grow and prosper, and we all make up the world we live in.

I think about myself and.... one of the Basketball Wives, for instance. I cannot fathom having ANYTHING in common with those chicks, aside from our genders and races. And I shake my head constantly when I happen to catch commercials for the show on television.

I'm sure there are countless other people in the celebrity world, or even in our everyday lives that you feel the same way about. They seem so far removed from who you are and what you're all about... but I bet if you looked beyond the surface, there would be a common ground revealed.

Ultimately its in finding that common ground that results in empathy and compassion for one another. Imagine how beautiful this world would be with those characteristics being the predominant one in all of us? It's a world I definitely want to live in.

This week's Music Therapy with Miss Moon is a song about our connections. I hope you all will let it inspire you to join me in envisioning a life without apathy. Here's 1 Giant Leap with Speech (of Arrested Development), Neneh Cherry and Ulali in "Braided Hair".



Yo we was talking earlier and I was telling you talking bout life
I feel like life is like braided hair
Its sorta like twist you know
Bout braided hair like twist
You know three strands twist together
Ultimately you get to where you wanna get to

From the same dirt from the heels of my ancestors
The naked roads and the fields where the pain festered
And I wonder where the hold came from
In the deeps of my heart make me yearn for the drum
It's the same place where the cross is burned
The same place where the loss was earned
It's the place where the floss was yearned
Gold teeth and bling ice on the ring baby sure

Chorus: We've all got things that are hanging about
Things that make us cool,
Things that make us whack,
Things that make us mad
Things we wish we never had done
But they're just the things that make us real
Not the maps to guide where we go from here
The road twists and braids our hair
Until we all get there

I like that I don't know some mysteries
Ancient things and beginnings
Excited about the day when I don't have to hear all the theories
My scalp needs some grease
It's the same place where the crosses burned
The same place where the loss was earned
The only way we all can learn
Is if we have these braids with the twist and turns so

Walking in the race of life
Looking for my own pace
Not always wanting to but I have to
Sometimes feeling like I've bitten off much more than I could chew
But the wind goes though my hair
Lifts me up with ease not a crease
Hair full of grease no weave embracing me
It's you I see
I am you and you are me I see yeah
I am you and you are me I see

We might survive as brothers yeah or perish here as fools
Go place your bets
Don't bet too soon
You might find me in another
Feels like someone you once knew
You know that face yeah we all do
Braided hair (what's it all for?)

Music Therapy with Miss Moon

Happy Monday, y'all!! Black History is over, but it's never too late to learn about our history.... and when I say "our history", I mean the history of humanity... as Black History is just as another part of of the collective story that is Humanity.



Today's lesson comes courtesy of Les Nubians... with one of my favorites of theirs.. "Makeda". Let it serve as a reminder of where we all come from.



On veut nous faire croire
They want us to believe
A des mythes perdus Des passege de I'histoires
Myths Of A Lost Passege of History
Falsifies et revus De Ramses a mandela, Que de verites tues
Falsified and revised from Ramses to Mandela that true silent
En ignorant le depart, on erre sans but.
Ignoring the start, it wanders aimlessly.


Makeda etait reine, belle et puissante
Makeda was queen, beautiful and powerful
Salomon revait de sa peau noire
Solomon dreamed of her black skin
Je chante pour raviver les memoires
I sing to revive the memories
Exhumer les connaissances
Unearthing the knowledge
Que la spirale du temps efface.
That the spiral of time erases.
La reine de saba vit en moi
Queen of Sheba lives in me
Makeda vit en moi.
Makeda lives in me.

Ravivons nos memoires
Let us revive our memories
ll faut changer I'histoire
The history should be changed
elle part a la derive,
A la derive de mes maux
History is being deformed by words….No
Le savoir et la sagesse
The knowledge and wisdom
Sont a portee de main
Are close at hand
Ecoute et observe...
Listen and observe ...

Makeda etait reine, belle et puissante
Makeda was queen, beautiful and powerful
Salomon revait de sa peau noire
Solomon dreamed of her black skin
Je chante pour raviver les memoires
I sing to revive the memories
Exhumer les connaissances
Unearthing the knowledge
Que la spirale du temps efface.
That the spiral of time erases.
La reine de saba vit en moi
Queen of Sheba lives in me
Makeda vit en moi.
Makeda lives in me.

Mon peuple danse et chante
My people dance and sing
ll faut sa joie
They express their joy
Loin de I'ignorance, il demontre sa foi,
Far from ignorance, they show their faith
Riche d'hommes et de valeurs,
Blessed with men and values
lls repareront les erreurs,
We repair the errors
Fils et filles, vous et moi,
Sons and daughters you and me
Prets au combat.
Ready to fight.

Makeda etait reine, belle et puissante
Makeda was queen, beautiful and powerful
Salomon revait de sa peau noire
Solomon dreamed of her black skin
Je chante pour raviver les memoires
I sing to revive the memories
Exhumer les connaissances
Unearthing the knowledge
Que la spirale du temps efface.
That the spiral of time erases.
La reine de saba vit en moi
Queen of Sheba lives in me
Makeda vit en moi.
Makeda lives in me.

Music Therapy with Miss Moon

Last year, I posted an edition of Be Blessed, highlighting a poem, Time-Tested Beauty Tips, written by Sam Levenson, but commonly attributed to actress, icon, and my namesake... Audrey Hepburn.



Inspired by these "beauty tips", Chrisette Michele's (Featuring Lem Payne) "Dear Miss Audrey" encapsulates the message that true beauty comes, not from what you wear, but how you love yourself and the world around you. What better choice for "Music Therapy with Miss Moon"?

Despite my eagerness to share this message, I couldn't find a good video online of the song. Undaunted, I decided to take matters into my own hands, and created a slideshow that showcases the unmistakable beauty that was Audrey Hepburn: iconic images of her at her most lovely - wearing beautiful clothing, and most importantly, images of her humanitarian work for UNICEF in the latter years of her life.

I hope that the song and the video will inspire all of you to find your beauty within, and in finding that beauty... do all you can to make the world around you a better (and more beautiful) place.

Dear Mrs. Hepburn
Good afternoon
I hope that heaven is kind to you
But a question -
How can I be lovely as you?
I got a poster in my bedroom
And I got a little black dress or two
(Dress or two)
Tell me what real ladies do?

Chorus
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine

I wake up early every morning
To find my picture painted beautifully
So beautifully
Right on the mirror on my wall
I take a brush up to my hair again
To find a brand new style for me... yeah
What makes me different from them all?

Chorus
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine

So sad, so bad, so sickening
And all they wanna know is where the rich n***as is
Short skirt with thighs out they killin’ it
But that ass the only reason we feelin’ it?
What a shame she thinks he gon give into it
But he only wants to get all up into it and get rid of it
Sex ain't love, friends don't need benefits
He’s full of lust baby, I know the sentiment

Chorus
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine
Excuse me Audrey how'd you do it?
She told me there was nothing to it
She said: Just let your soul shine (repeats)
Let it shine

Champions of Crackheadedness: Man Choked to Death by CVS employee for stealing

I read this article and wonder when the cost of a tube of toothpaste and a box of crayons became more important than someone's life. Granted theft is not the way to go about getting the things in life that you want and/or need, but when does bad behaviour become an excuse for worse behaviour!?!?!

This ties in to my recent blog about the D-Bag epidemic - One's complete willingness to ignore and deny the humanity of another!

Officer Was On The Scene As Man Was Choked To Death By CVS Employee For Stealing Toothpaste

Article from The Huffington Post

First Posted: 05-11-10 12:38 PM | Updated: 05-11-10 12:48 PM

The story of a man who was choked to death by a CVS employee after stealing toothpaste from the Chicago store on Saturday is getting even more scrutiny, after police admitted Monday that a Cook County sheriff's officer was on the scene when the man, Anthony Kyser, was killed.

Kyser, a 35-year-old barber, was chased out of the Little Village store and restrained by an employee of the store who saw him stealing, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The employee then strangled him to death.

Witnesses said Kyser, of the 1400 block of South Hamlin, cried, "I can't breathe, I can't breathe!" as the CVS worker held him in a chokehold for what they thought was several minutes.

Witnesses told the newspaper that there was an off-duty officer on the scene while Kyser was being choked, and after initially saying they were unaware of a police presence, the Chicago Police Department now admits that a Cook County sheriff's officer was on the scene:

As the correctional officer pointed a weapon at Kyser and told him to stop struggling, Kyser repeatedly pleaded that he couldn't breathe, the witnesses said.

[Chicago Police Lt. Lt. Maureen] Biggane said a surveillance video shows the correctional officer in the alley, speaking on a cell phone, but does not show her pointing a weapon. The officer waited for an ambulance to arrive, but left before uniformed Chicago Police arrived, Biggane said.

Police wouldn't release the correctional officer's identity. Sheriff's spokesman Steve Patterson said there is nothing for the sheriff to investigate, based on Chicago Police's account of her actions.

Chicago Police will not press charges against the unnamed CVS manager, despite a medical examiner's finding that man's death was a homicide, reports MyFoxChicago.

Kyser was accused of stealing tooth paste and crayons, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Story continues below

Kyser was known as "Pops" to his three former step-children, reports the Chicago Tribune. Kyser's ex-wife Ann Marie Balboa questioned the police department's decision not to press charges against the CVS manager:

"How's it accidental?" Balboa said. "You're choking the [expletive] out of somebody. He [the employee] should be fired. He should be facing criminal charges. You don't take someone's life over toothpaste."

Witnesses told the Sun-Times the officer never told the employee, who has been placed on leave by CVS, to release Kyser. The witnesses also said the officer can be seen pointing a gun at Kyser on the surveillance video. Police also have not explained why the off-duty officer left the scene before uniformed officers arrived.

Miss Moon's Musing About: The D-Bag* Epidemic

* Definition courtesy of UrbanDictionary.com -

d'bag
	It is short term for the word Douche Bag. Douche bag meaning a person who like an actual douche bag takes dirty vaginal secretion. Also implying this person sucks, is stupid. It's a basic insult. Ron is a d'bag! Stan is a D'bag! Yer face is a d'bag. or simply D'bag

The above exchange I recorded on my Twitter timeline reflects a growing trend I've been witnessing: grown ass men (men who are old enough to know better), blatantly treat women disrespectfully and with (imho) great malice.

Now, I am not going to turn this into a rant about how chivalry is dead and that women should be treated (insert adjective here). My beef is that these men are obviously hostile and have chosen to direct their anger at whatever on any woman that happens to enter their paths. In addition to the man I spotted this afternoon, I have seen a man rush to grab a seat on the subway and glare at the pregnant woman (as if DARING HER to say something) who has to stand as a result.

Usually I speak out when I see things like that, even if it's just a snarky "Who say's chivalry is dead?", but in the recent months of news stories of black women getting beat up for "mouthing off" and "acting uppity"has caused me to hold my tongue. And I regret that I didn't say anything. I guess this blog entry is my meek way to voice my disgust some people's inability to recognize the humanity of others.

I realize that if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem. So what can we do when we spot men (and women... because there are unfortunately female D-Bags, too!) treating another human being like garbage?

DO SOMETHING: Sign the Oneness Day Petition from Humanity's Team

I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to place my name alongside Yoko Ono's, Marianne Williamson's, Deepak Chopra's, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu's in this petition, and was thrilled when I thought this would be a perfect addition to my "Do Something" blogs.

From Humanity Team's website:

Humanity’s Team is collecting 50,000 signatures to persuade the United Nations to declare a Oneness Day, a day set aside and embraced by individuals, communities and nations for humanity to celebrate, discuss and experience our commonality, while still acknowledging and respecting our beautiful cultural diversities...a day to unite in Oneness for the greater good of the Human Family.



If you agree we are all One, that life is sacred...to be cherished and shared peacefully...I hope you'll join me in signing the Oneness Day petition. It takes only a minute of your time and will make the world a better place for our children and grandchildren.

To sign the Petition, just click on this link (or cut and paste it into your browser's address bar): http://humanitysteam.org/onenessdaypetition And be sure to tell your friends!

Peace from Brooklyn!