Thieves in the Temple: A Prequel to Purple Rain

CH. 20 Everybody is a Star- Sly and The Family Stone

Burt fell for the rabid dog story hook, line and sinker. Sam made sure Mona's dress had a little tear in the back. Mona cried telling him the story of how Kid triumphantly beat the dog off the school playground with a stick to protect Mona. Another dinner with Juanita to thank Kid for his bravery and Kid was back in Burt's good graces. Although invited, Francis refused to come. Kid did not care. He just wanted to be around Mona and he was the better for it.

"Kid would do well if he applied himself." That's what every teacher had said about Kid from Kindergarten. He was tested for disabilities in the second grade after he had fallen and had a concussion. The school egg-heads determined there was nothing wrong with him but a poor family life and sheer laziness.

The exception was music. All of his teachers thought he was polite and mannerly. He never caused trouble or disrespected them. Most of the teachers had stopped trying and resigned that one day he would be a great musician. Why keep pressing him toward academics when his talent would potentially take him very far? They also had more worthy students to invest their time in. But, a turnaround occurred during the second semester of the 8th grade.

Although Kid did absolutely no classwork, he turned in all of his homework completely neat and correct every day. He got C's and D's on his tests and was passing all of his classes. It was obvious what had happened or more accurately who had happened to Kid.

Every day in the Day-Brake garage, the Mid City Players rehearsed while Mona sat in the corner doing Kid's homework. She told him, "When you are in class just repeat everything the teacher says in your mind and make a song out of it. Then you'll remember for the test and maybe pass." She was right. He did not remember everything, but enough to pass a test. He sang,

"Lake superior wears a bustier

Lake Ontario, what's the scenario?

Mrs. Huron gave me a hard on

Lake Erie, you're teasing me

Lake Michigan do it again, again again..."

When Mona finished their homework, she wrote dirty stories in her notebook. After rehearsal, they walked ten blocks to the Smith basement where Mona shared what she wrote followed by live demonstrations. They started out sitting on the piano bench where Mona read out loud and soon they would be on the floor.

Being with Mona was easy; no pressure, no expectations. Kid saw the world in color again. He could hear what people were saying to him. Mona trained him to listen and acknowledge people around him. "Morris is not the only person who has something interesting to say," she told him, "Just listen."

Mona was smart but did not show it off. She helped him with his homework so they could both get to more important things done like writing, drawing, composing and kissing. The boy who did not even realize when girls flirted with him now had love abruptly awakened inside him. Although Mona was younger and smaller than him, Kid saw her as a giant. She had everything to offer and gave liberally. Kid wondered why she was so free with herself. Why did she make so many deposits so frequently with virtually no return? He had only one thing to give and thought it proper to give it on Valentine's Day. It was something she said she wanted, so he sat at the piano to compose.

Kid could hear the music in his head. Some of the chords were familiar. He tested different combinations. He did as Lonette McKee had told him and sewed them together like a quilt. It satisfied him when they sounded as he imagined them. He decided not to be lazy with this song. He could hold chords for measures or he could craft a music box in between. For the girl who made him feel significant in the world, he would invest some effort into this one.

"When I first looked into your eyes,

That's when I knew I wanted you,

Ohh, Mona, now that you know I love you,

Baby, what are you going to do?"

How many times was Sunny Day going to ask Kid to attend church with them? When they had gigs, Sunny Day drove the band with all their equipment. Sometimes she smoked MORE brand cigarettes in the van and waited outside. Sometimes she left and had a drink in a bar if they were in St. Paul. Not too many people knew her there. But Sunny Day was well known in Minneapolis as the first lady of Metropolitan Cathedral, as Mrs. Sunny Brake.

Sunny Day wanted Kid to play guitar for their church. She knew if he got in the right environment, he could really fly. Getting him to believe that was nearly impossible. Kid spent the night ant the Brake house on Saturday nights if it got too late to go home. Kid used Juanita as his excuse to leave early Sunday mornings. "My mom is a strict Catholic and will not allow me to go to any other church," Kid lied. Juanita would have been happy if Kid got any kind of religion at all, but Sunny never bothered to find out if it was true.