Eboni Goes To The Jazz Festival

I picked my afro over ten times today and added some moisture. I put some lovely scented oil on my skin. I smell like vanilla and berries— two of my favorite smells. I hear the music playing outside from my apartment window. I live on the third floor of my building. The crowd is gathering. It’s time for me to get ready.

I took a bath at noon today, so I am still nice and fresh. I put on some gold earrings that make me look like a goddess— maybe Yemaya, the goddess of the ocean. I lined my forehead with a gold stripe, right down the middle. My eyeshadow is a bright dark blue. My lips are gold as the stars at night. It’s time to put on my blue flowing dress and false eyelashes— I am going to be seen tonight. I just stepped out in my blue wedge heels and blue handbag.

I don’t know where to go, so I guess I will follow the direction of the crowd. They’re heading north. The streets are blocked, so a crowd of hundreds can enter. I see a lot of women walking barefoot, carrying their heels. The men and boys are walking in large groups at a time.

I don’t notice anyone who I am familiar with, but plenty of men who I want to talk to. But, I can’t stop the crowd. I must continue to head north to the jazz festival. Luckily, I ate before leaving my apartment. I put some granola in my purse, just in case I get hungry. I always take breath mints with me, so I don’t scare the men away because of funky breath.

Finally, I get there and there are food trucks, vendors, and artists all over the place. I think I will start my night by looking at some jewelry to add to my collection at home. I always go for gold instead of silver— it simply shimmers against my chocolate skin and makes me look heavenly. I purchased three gold bracelets, a pair of large gold earrings, and a lapis lazuli pendant necklace.

As I turn to go toward the jazz music stage, I see a man in a button-up, striped navy blue and white shirt looking at me with a sexy grin on his face. He would not take his eyes off of me, and so I smiled back. He walks over and asks me if I would like to take a seat with him. I said, “Yes.”

He asks me where I am from. “I’m from Jamaica.” I guess he can sense a little bit of an accent. After a few songs, we exchanged telephone numbers. He asks me if I want something to eat from one of the food trucks. I chose the Italian food truck because it seemed like the safest one to choose. Who doesn’t enjoy Italian food, right? He paid for both of our meals. We both sat in the courtyard where there was lighting and ate our food. It was delicious and I didn’t get a drop on my dress, but he got a little stain on his shirt.

After we ate, we continued to walk around the jazz festival and stopped to see several vendors. He saw that I was eyeing a blue headscarf, so he bought it for me. At around 12:00 AM, I told him, “It’s about time for me to go, I have to run errands in the morning.” He offered to walk me to my car, so I told him that I lived up the street. “Can I walk you home?” We walked to my place. Before I could walk inside, he grabbed me gently by the arm and planted a kiss on my lips. I loved it. We both said “good night.”

The next morning, I woke up to a text message, “Can I see you again?” I said, “When?” I’m Eboni and I went to the jazz festival.