Black gold is what comes from within, a soulful presence and a confidence in how the creator fashioned the human form.
It is not the money that is the gold, yet the natural beauty of a Monet that each Black child was gifted at their birth.
"Any hair sculptor," said Mike, "will tell you that the finest art he can make is from natural Afro-hair. It makes a real statement from the catwalk to the sidewalk, moving as the girl walks with that confident air. It's magic. Those queens are the real black gold."
"Black gold," she would say, "is what lives in the heart and soul, and that confidence to be who you are is what shows in your skin and hair, it shines from your eyes, others can see it in the way you walk. And even without any of that, your gold is your love, your God given spirit, the way you connect with others and make the world a better place."
"We're not taking those those hair extensions anymore," she said, "they come from slaves in China, girls who've had their hair cut off and forced to make wigs. I don't them anyway, it's an insult to my natural look. I've got big, bold, beautiful afro hair and I'm gonna own it. That's me. I'm the gold - not some lame product on a salon shelf."
That boy, from his black skin to sculpted hair, he was all the gold in the world to me, and I was his.
"She was quite the most stunning girl you've ever seen, and that natural afro-hair, wow, so beautiful, enchanting in the way it moved. But that wasn't what made her such black gold, that was her brain. She was the most gifted student we've seen here in a decade. When she shone, we were all in her shade. Sometimes when you see a natural leader all you can do is stand back and be of assistance if they need you."