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Portraits Of Boston: I Stopped Singing

“Years ago, I used to sing. Then my son got sick and died, and I stopped singing. His death wasn’t anyone’s fault, but my husband blamed the whole world for it. He just couldn’t get over the grief and the anger. We would go to the supermarket and he would be mad at everyone in the line. So we got divorced, I moved to New York, and later married again. My second husband himself had lost his wife, and he was really able to relate to what I was going through. He knew I used to sing, and one day he told me, ‘If it makes you happy, I think you should sing again.’ So I picked up the phone and called my old voice coach, ‘Hey, do you remember me?’ And here I am, all these years later, singing and even performing once again.

I truly believe that happiness is a choice. And I know my son wouldn’t want me to be sad for the rest of my life. I think the best way to pay tribute to him is by singing and being happy.”


Portraits of Boston is a project of independent photographer Ivan Velinov. He is regularly sharing some of his favorite portraits with WBUR. Visit his website to see the hundreds of portraits he has taken on the streets of Boston.

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