Insight

Last Saturday was special. I attended Nikki’s debut. She is the daughter of very good friends, mentors, and business partners, Debbie and Gene. 

My last debut was actually about this same time so many years back. I recall dancing the Cotillon. This debut did not have it. No more square dances.

Instead we had hiphop, Chris Brown, and Ne-yo playing the whole night. We had very good dance numbers from Orange Dance Studio. On this night, we had a cocktail waiting area, a photo-all-you-can booth, two drink tickets, a well laid-out tent at the Le Pavillion, mimes in white, and graffiti in the entrance and on the stage. This night also gave away gift certificates from Starbucks and 4 nokia mobile phones.

On this night were Nikki’s family and friends, wishing her well on her journey to womanhood. On this night, we saw friends who shared how Nikki mattered to them. Each disclosure was real; each disclosure was special because it revealed what Nikki meant to different people. 

In the end, it was family who shared the deepest wishes of love and good blessings for her. Debbie, wishing for her daughter to always walk in God’s ways. And Gene declaring how this once-in-a-lifetime celebration can only happen once in Nikki’s life. Perhaps, the second time is when…. well, Gene says not yet  

Last saturday was a special time. It showed me: 

• family still matters in the end 
• fathers may shed a tear for their daughters on this night and not be ashamed of it
• hip hop is cool and may be easy to learn
• debuts are fun; not necessarily stiff and formal 
• time is like a five-minute video presentation: it goes by quickly
• no matter how much you say how bad the economy is, people have more important reasons to be happy about 
• that Gene and Debbie are cool parents because they overcame the generation gap with their children; 

Nikki, i thought said it well, when it was her turn to speak. She said that it was quality and not quantity that mattered. That numbers don’t tell how you are as a friend; it is the quality of your relationships you have nurtured that determine how life treats you. 

Very deep insights from an 18-year old woman.

Of course, she drew this from a deep well of love.