Nina Simone - "Feeling Good"

She was one of the most extraordinary artists of the twentieth century, an icon of American music. She was the consummate musical storyteller, a griot as she would come to learn, who used her remarkable talent to create a legacy of liberation, empowerment, passion, and love through a magnificent body of works. She earned the moniker ‘High Priestess of Soul’ for she could weave a spell so seductive and hypnotic that the listener lost track of time and space as they became absorbed in the moment. She was who the world would come to know as Nina Simone.

When Nina Simone died on April 21, 2003, she left a timeless treasure trove of musical magic spanning over four decades from her first hit, the 1959 Top 10 classic “I Loves You Porgy,” to “A Single Woman,” the title cut from her one and only 1993 Elektra album. While thirty-three years separate those recordings, the element of honest emotion is the glue that binds the two together – it is that approach to every piece of work that became Nina’s uncompromising musical trademark.

By the end of her life, Nina was enjoying an unprecedented degree of recognition. Her music was enjoyed by the masses due to the CD revolution, discovery on the Internet, and exposure through movies and television. Nina had sold over one million CDs in the last decade of her life, making her a global catalog best-seller.

I heard this song last night and it put me in a place of real joy. It was an incredible night, full of laughter and smiles, and it reminded me that living in this moment is all we can do. Savor the joy that is right in front of you. Knowing that it will end eventually only means that what is happening now must be enjoyed all the more fully.

So today, living in it, I choose Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” as my, dive into the moment, hold onto what’s good, enjoy the gifts you are given, song for a, this too shall pass, feel it in your arms again, it’s ok to be excited, Thursday.