Member-only story
IT’S MY LIFE — SNIPPETS
The Day Cicely Tyson Scolded Me
She was everyone’s Queen but on this day, she became my mother
It was my birthday. I’d taken off work, hoping for a day of fun, but my lousy excuse of a boyfriend was nowhere to be found.
Feeling sad and foolish once again — another birthday, another disappointment — I packed a small overnight bag, left my apartment in the South Loop, and walked over to South Michigan Avenue and 8th Street.
Standing at the bus stop on the corner, I planned to catch the #4 Cottage Grove bus for a long, leisurely ride to the south side. I’d spend the afternoon with my father, and then head west towards Halsted Street to spend the night at my mother’s place.
I leaned against a lamp post, smoking a cigarette while casually surveying the bustling scene, when my eyes fell upon a woman several yards away flanked by two big guys on either side.
Although she was small, the ground rumbled with her every step.
She wore a bright, cobalt blue suit. A peplum-styled jacket with fabulously wide shoulder pads and a fitted, knee-length skirt. Dark hose. Dark suede pumps. Big gold earrings and shiny bracelets. Lots of them.
Her hair was cut and styled in a chin-length wedge, its texture kinky, not straight. It sat out from her head like an Egyptian pyramid.
She was so fly.
When they were about twenty feet away, my mouth dropped open. Even behind dark shades, I recognized those famous cheekbones. It was the actress, Cicely Tyson.
I gasped. We were just a block or so from the Johnson Publications Company building. Headquarters of Ebony magazine, I was certain that’s where she was headed.
She saw me, smiled, and then she frowned and tapped under her chin, signaling for me to close my mouth. I did, promptly. She nodded her approval and I nodded back, watching as she and her bodyguards walked past me and on towards the JPC building.
I spun around, gawking at the handful of people standing there with me, waiting for the bus. A few were reading newspapers while others were plugged into their walkmans and lost in space. No one had seen Miss Tyson or witnessed what had just transpired between us.
What else was that but a gift from the heavens? Happy birthday to me! It was a moment I will never forget.
