I met Linda in Atlanta through my soul brother Kevin Hernandez, soon after he and I became friends (mid-90's... Lord!). Linda had been Kevin's 'second mom' pretty much since he was a kid, and soon after our introduction (and after she thoroughly sized me up) she took me under her loving "momma wings" as well. For a close circle of us Atlanta friends Linda was our "Mamita," an amazing maternal presence of love, warmth, emotional support, and good humor in our lives. One awesome memory I have of Mamita is how happy she ALWAYS was to see me. She invariably greeted me with her huge, beautiful smile and sparkling eyes; a warm, tight, loving hug; and some variation of, "Daaaavvvvviiiiii! Mi'jo! I love you so much, Davi!"
Towards the end of her physical presence on this plane of consciousness, Linda's medical picture became very complicated and challenging. While she was still of sharp and lucid mind, however, I informed her I would build a special place to celebrate her life and her love here at Paya Bay. I even sent her pictures of the spot I had chosen. Having visited Paya Bay years back while still in good health, Linda surprised me by accurately recognizing the view from the selected spot. She said, "Davi, I'm just a regular person... I can't believe you would do something like this for me." Of course, knowing Linda as well as I did, I knew what she was really thinking: "Oh my gawd! Fabulous! I'm going to have my own little place at Paya Bay! Break out the vodka, bitches! Let's celebrate!" This happy, decadent, brash, unfiltered, effervescent spontaneity was but one of Ms. Linda's multiple charms, and one of many reasons she was loved so much.
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