I wonder how often Maya Rudolph listens to her mother, Minnie Ripperton, sing "Loving You." Her mother, who passed when Maya was young, wrote and recorded that song as a lullaby for her baby girl and son.
There's a video clip of Ripperton singing the song on a talk show. Flowers adorn her afro as she sings at an octave normally preserved for the angels. At the end, she sings "Maya, Maya, Maya, Maya," and you can feel the love, wonder, and joy she feels toward her daughter.
Ripperton passed away at 31 due to breast cancer. Maya was just seven years old. Rudolph shared, “I always had a sense that my mom was doing something different and special because I saw how people responded to her. Her energy just had something to it that made people so happy...."
Many would say the same about Maya. Her comedy is her song, which brings me and many others so much joy. She's hosted SNL Last night. Her opening monologue was a "Mother". I'm sure her mom would be proud. I hope her mother's song brings her comfort.
"Loving You" is Minnie Ripperton's song for her two children, but it also serves as a song for mothers everywhere. Instead of Maya, I insert my children's names. I feel the same love, wonder, and joy Ms. Ripperton emanates in that video. I'm grateful that my mother felt the same for me and still does, even though she has been gone too long.
I strive daily for my children to feel the same and for children young and old everywhere to feel it, if not from their mother, from someone who, through action, sings that song for them.