Fifteen years ago, early in the morning of October 20th, I had the most vivid dream of my life. In my dream I was in a hospital delivery room, giving birth. I was pushing and pushing, and then finally, she was born. A beautiful baby girl with thick black hair and blue eyes. She was put into my arms, and that’s when I woke up, solid in the knowledge that I was going to have a girl.
In real life, I was very very pregnant, due any day. The baby’s room was painted in yellow & white stripes because I’d decided against ultrasounds that would help me determine what flavor baby to prepare for. But when I woke up that morning, I knew a baby girl was on the way. And I knew she’d have those blue eyes and dark hair.
If you’re a mother, you know what I mean. Over those nine months, you gain a connection to the life growing inside of you, and you just know. Funny thing though… up until that moment I really had no idea. I hadn’t even decided on a middle name if the baby turned out to be a girl (if it was a boy, Noah Michael, after my grandfather). But I knew that dream was a little heads up for what was in store.
That evening, while stepping out of the car at about a quarter after six, my water broke. Six hours later, just past midnight, after a whirlwind labor, Sophia Louisa was born. She had the eyes and hair just like the baby girl in my dream. The hair was so striking, because it wasn’t fine baby hair that so many babies are born with, which tends to fall out after awhile. It was lush, thick and long, already over her ears and down to her neck in the back. It was black on the ends, but the roots were more of a chestnut color. It never fell out, but from that day on, it grew out lighter and then lighter, until her hair became a golden blonde.
Before she was born, her dad and I used to pass the time wondering what would result from the combining of our DNA: would our baby be born with his long, thin feet and arms and my short, stubby legs? His roman nose and unibrow and my elfin ears? As it turned out, she got the best of both of us. His long legs, arms and feet, his blue eyes. My hair, nose and facial shape, and my curves.
Fifteen years later, there are a lot of other qualities my daughter has developed that are similar to mine, but the most obvious is her love of music. As you can imagine, music has always filled our lives wherever we go. In the house, in the car, there’s always a soundtrack. Some of her favorite songs came through exposure from us (The Beatles and anything C&W from her dad, Rufus Wainwright, OKGO and Maroon 5 from me), but she’s definitely developed her own awesome, individual style.
For her birthday this weekend, all she’s asked for is to get the screen repaired on her iPod Touch (her device of choice to do her two favorite things: listening to music & photography), but so
far I haven’t been able to find anyone in the area who will fix it for less than the darn thing cost in the first place. So while I try to find a way to make that happen, I asked if she’d like to create this week’s playlist and share her favorite music with the world.
A few days ago she was whittling her list of songs down to a reasonable 38 (down from about 80), and I have to admit, I was delightfully surprised by many of her choices. I asked her to explain why she chose some of the songs that you’ll hear when you click the play arrow below. So she not only chose the music for today’s playlist, she also provided the commentary below.
Sophia, happy birthday. You have turned into exactly the person I dreamed of. Not just the exterior features that literally came to me in a dream, but the human qualities that you have developed during your fifteen years on this planet. You have endeavored to be the best friend you can possibly be to so many people. You’re a good listener when they have problems, and you always look for solutions. You’re accepting, generous, kindhearted and honest. You are a compassionate soul with a goofball spirit, in no hurry to grow up yet wise beyond your years. I don’t know how I got so lucky.
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Beatles – Here Comes The Sun I love love love the Beatles, from the first time I heard them.
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fun. – At Least I’m Not As Sad This is my song of the week!
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Coldplay – Talk Seems like Coldplay always have a song that relates perfectly to something going on in my life right now.
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Foster The People – I Would Do Anything For You
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Group Love – Tongue Tied
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OkGo – Here It Goes Again
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Imagine Dragons – It’s Time This is a song I heard first on Glee, one of my top 3 favorite tv shows (along with Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother).
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The Animals – House Of The Rising Sun I fell in love with this song when I heard Pip do it on The Voice last season. Wish I had that version instead!
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One Direction – I Wish
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Weezer – Islands In The Sun This was from the movie Aquamarine that I saw back in elementary school, and I’ve always liked it.
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Michael Jackson – Black Or White
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Maroon 5 – Stutter
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Goo Goo Dolls – Iris
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Avett Bros – Paranoia in B flat major Every time I hear this song, it makes me skip around.
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Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man
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Nine Inch Nails – In This Twilight Not the regular version, gotta be the piano remix.
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Gregoire – Trois Plus Moi I’m taking French in school this year at U-Prep
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Journey – Don’t Stop Believing The first really great song I ever learned to play on the piano.
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Skillet – Yours To Hold
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Journey – Faithfully
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The Police – Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
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Maroon 5 – Payphone
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Rascal Flatts – Summer Nights
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Norah Jones – Chasing Pirates I saw her in concert last summer while visiting my aunt. She’s amazing, even if I did fall asleep.
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Taylor Swift – Mine
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Train – Soul Sister
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Kristin Chenowith – Popular I’m always involved with the school musicals, and this is one of my favorite songs from a broadway musical. In fact, I sang this for my audition last year.
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Foster The People – Don’t Stop
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Michael Jackson – Thriller
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Gorillaz – 19-2000 I love the Gorillaz. They’re weird like me.
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Rupert Homes – Escape (The Pina Colada Song) I used to take ballroom dancing lessons, and for some reason we used to sing this song all the time during class.
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Hot Chocolate – You Sexy Thing
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Smash Mouth – Walking On The Sun
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Commodores – Brick House
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The Drifters – Under The Boardwalk This song always seems to get stuck in my head.
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Rufus Wainwright – Cigarettes & Chocolate Milk This was my first favorite song, ever since I was really little, probably because he was singing about jelly beans and chocolate milk. Not so much the cigarettes.
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Rick Astley – Never Gonna Give You Up You’ve just been Rick Roll’d!
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Julian Smith – Stuck Inside Your Head This is just in case you get one of these songs stuck inside your head. I love everything Julian Smith does.
Valerie Ing-Miller has been the Northern California Program Coordinator for Jefferson Public Radio in Redding for nine years and can often be found serving as Mistress of Ceremonies at the Cascade Theatre. For her, ultimate satisfaction comes from a perfect segue. She’s the mother of a teenage daughter and a 7-year-old West Highland Terrier, and can’t imagine life without them or music. Valerie wakes up with a song in her head, she sings in the shower and at the top of her lungs in the car.
