Me, mom and Tanya – Rockrose Ave 1979. One of my fav pics. I was 12, Tanya 13. This would be our last Easter celebration like this after a 10yr run. We were getting older and were allowed some freedom. The following year, I was in full athletic mode topped off with some red converse sneakers I got from Cinderella Shoes on Park Heights Ave. Moms was really into fashion and she made sure we were always fresh.

Like Christmas, Easter had a spiritual side as well as a “worldly” side. It meant a new suit and shoes for me, and new dress and shoes for my sister, Tanya. It was sitting in a crowded barbershop in Mondawmin mall the Saturday before, waiting for my man Ernest to shape up my lil afro. My sister would be sitting in our kitchen with my mom or grandmother dabbing Ultra Sheen in her hair while that hot comb is heating up on the stove. My grandmother handled that hot comb with such precision, you would think she had went to school for it. This was “Black girl magic” back in the day.