I was waiting with my group for the van from the hotel to pick us up. I noticed that the people from the "after concert event" had dwindled away and there weren't any guards posted. So I headed for the bar for a diet Coke. Then I saw a curtain behind which, the high priced ticket holders had been having their pictures taken with the Maestro. So I went over to take a look at what was going on.

And there was José Carreras standing right in front of me. With knees turning to mush, I said "Maestro, Maestro .." and blurted out something of my story, how his singing took me out of the depth of despair and grief after the concurrent events of my oldest daughter's untimely death at 22, my impending divorce and my mother's succumbing to dementia. It was in those dark days that I heard his Misa Criolla on the radio, and the voice of José Carreras reached in to the depth of my soul and brought me out of a hellish life. Carreras awoke a spark of life that was buried deeply within me.

Señor Carreras was most sympathetic to my story, he kept looking intently into my eyes. For me, it was almost a surreal, out of body experience. I had shaken hands with him initially, but I asked if I could hug him, and he said "of course." I asked for an autograph and he took my program, asked his assistant for a pen. He then asked for another pen which would be better for writing on the glossy cover. How I walked away I do not know, I do not remember a thing. I was euphoric, to say the least. José Carreras is everything I have been told about him: gracious, humble, caring, human! I did not sleep all night.

Other singers who had once lifted me to the sublime heights of their talent could no longer fill the void and assuage the pain of living. Jussi Bjoerling, whose "Au Font De Temple Saint" sung with Robert Merrill, at one time brought me to the heights of exultation. But, within my despair, even old favorites could not help me. I had not heard the voice of José Carreras until that moment on a Friday afternoon in the peak of the commuter traffic heading south on the 405 freeway in Los Angeles. The piece ended and there was a long silence on the radio until the announcer said, "That was the voice of José Carreras." My soul yearned for more of that voice, that passion, that compassion. And so I began collecting tapes, CDs and videos, never believing that I would see this artist in performance or tell him how he brought me back to life.

The reason I made the trip was to meet the other Carreras fans. I felt I had kindred spirits that I needed to meet and get to know. And they are one and all an inspiration to me. Bright, articulate, music-loving, compassionate, fun-loving, adventurous role models and friends were the gifts of that trip to Baltimore. The JCSA dinner meeting was a terrific event and I look forward to attending more of them. This time the evening before the concert was so special. It was relaxed and gave time to meet these wonderful people. Everyone was so kind and gracious, truly ambassadors of the artist we all admire. I felt I was with my family, and truly it is a "Carreras family."