by Diana Rossi, Medford, NJ

Here’s a story for the books. My daughter Cherokee was a Rolling Stones fan before she was born. Her dad and I listened to the Stones while she was in the womb. We listened to them when she was a baby. We listened to them as she grew up. The song we most likely associate with her dad, who died when she was 11, is “Beast of Burden”.

When Cherokee was 16, I took her to her first Stones concert in Phila. There we were in the 2nd level of the stadium, first row, rain pouring down, and the Stones were belting out “Beast of Burden”. I looked at Cher and she looked at me and somehow we believed that her dad was there with us at that very moment. We connected to the music in a way that was out of our bodies, laughing and crying at the same time. It was an amazing bonding experience and a true musical moment for mother and daughter (and dad somewhere in the galaxy).