Shaking My Bon-Bon and Adding to the List

This weekend, I made the trek down I-35 to San Antonio for a long-awaited concert – Ricky Martin. I had only been vaguely aware of Menudo (the boy band he was in way back in the day); but living in Miami in the 90’s, I had grown to be a fan of his Spanish language songs. When he released “Maria” – sung half in English, I was finally able to get others to at least listen to his music.

One album in particular, Sound Loaded, is my go-to when I need to lift my spirits. When I was diagnosed with melanoma, I had definitely listened to it more than once while waiting for the results to come back. So when a concert date was announced back in the Spring, we splurged and got 6th row tickets.

The concert was awesome. Ricky is still gorgeous, can dance like there’s no tomorrow, and actually sounds just as good live as he does on record (which is sadly not the case for some concerts I’ve been to lately). The show was a non-stop extravaganza – great backing band with horns and conga drums; scantily clad backup dancers – both male and female – to provide energy and more than a little eye candy; multiple costume changes…I danced all night, and even though I was wearing some high wedge shoes, I didn’t have any pain in my scar. (My feet, totally different story, but I’m so happy that my knee and the surrounding scar area gave me no issues whatsoever.)

Ricky Martin in concert – Oct.15 San Antonio

But I’m just bragging about the fun I had.

Before the concert and during the intermission, they played a video about his foundation and the work that they do to improve the lives of children and combat human trafficking. He has taken his celebrity and used it to shine a light on a subject that is not the easiest to think about. But it wasn’t handled with heaviness at all, more of a reminder than some people, especially the most defenseless, need help and that his organization wants to make a difference in the world; and if you wanted to, you could join in the effort.

During the show, it was genuine that Martin wanted the people in the audience to also have a good time, to have fun, to dance and sing along, to experience joy. And I was reminded again that despite what life throws at you, you do need those moments to just feel happy, throw your hands in the air, sing, and shake your bon-bon.

At the end of the show, a little sweaty from dancing but jubilant, I suddenly remembered that this was more than just a concert. Not seeing Ricky Martin live was a regret I had when I got my diagnosis. It was one of the bucket list items that I wasn’t sure I was ever going to be able to cross off the list during that bleak week in December, waiting to see whether the cancer had spread. Standing outside the arena on Saturday night, I quietly treasured the fact that this was one experience that I got to add to my life list. (And I would be more than happy to add as a second concert to the list too someday.)

So thanks Ricky for adding to my “so glad to be alive” list. That list is one that I’ll be delighted to continue to add to. Readers, what’s on your life list?