Kid Stories: Ada Milea, Dorina Chiriac and Radu Banzaru with "In Oaza"

Last evening, I went to a party. At some point in the party, the only child there, a sweet and beautiful little girl of 8 or 9 named Lily asked me to sit with her on her blanket in the back yard. From there, she took me into her world of fantasy that involved fairies, science, clouds, and a mean and nasty character named Hookman. While the adults were waging verbal wars about important things happening in the world, Lily and I were quietly battling Hookman. She went to great lengths to get us into the house unseen by Hookman, because he was roaming around in the dark. She told me that we had to be quiet so that he didn't hear us. She also told me that we had to defeat him because the other adults outside needed our protection. So, she made me repeat a saying after her upholding good in the world, and then to finish off Hookman once and for all (who apparently couldn't stand laughter and happiness) she led me in about an hour of dancing. It was a kind of You've Been Served kind of thing, where she would make up steps for me to imitate, and then I would make them up for her.

As I grow older, sometimes it feels like it's harder and harder for me to enter worlds that I so easily inhabited as a child. Worlds of fantasy that I wandered in and out of on whatever whim I had now seem somewhat closed to me, or at least aren't as easy to access as they were 40 years ago. At least, until I am with a child, who believes so earnestly in the worlds that they create that you cannot help but go there with them. I don't have any children of my own, and therefore I treasure these types of moments when they occur because they bring me to alternate realities that I rarely get to anymore.

Besides sharing some time with a child, there are some other ways that help me approximate fantasy in my life, and one of those is music. The tune that has been randomly selected today is In Oaza, and it is a fantasy story for children sung by Romanian singer and actress Ada Milea with the help of Romanian actors Dorina Chiriac and Radu Banzaru. Ada Milea began her career in the Transylvanian city of Târgu Mureș and after starting in theater she became a singer. She has released 11 albums. Dorina Chiriac is described as one of the most beloved Romanian actresses of her generation, and received an award for her work in the film Terminus Paradis. Radu Banzaru is best known for his roles in the movies The Whistleblower, Amen, and Restul e Tacere.

In Oaza tells the story of Apollodorus who, in a desert oasis, is approached by a sad monkey who wants to marry him. Unfortunately for them, the monkey's parents will not let it happen. I guess that's the lesson kids - don't ever marry a monkey! In Oaza can be found on the Ada Milea's album Apolador, released in 2004.