What Music Does

My mother’s piano lived in the front room of our house on Parker Street. On most school days, I could hear Mom playing and singing as I walked up the long sidewalk that led to our front door. I would try to guess the song as I got closer. Was it Rhapsody in Blue or An American in Paris? Sometimes I sat on the front porch glider and just listened until she stopped. Other times I slipped in through the screen door silently, and sat on the floor nearby. Watching my mother get lost in her music was wonderful, even stirring. As a young child, I sensed her passion for music. Playing gave her shelter. It had been a large part of her identity growing up, long before she got married and became a mom. I adored hearing her play and grew to enjoy the music she loved. One would think that I would have been motivated to learn to play the piano. How silly of me to have wasted such an opportunity. But even though I never played an instrument or sang, my mother’s passion, ignited by her own parents, spread from me to my daughter.
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Grandmother and grandaughter
 bound together through music.
Some of my daughter's books
for fall semester.


6 comments:

  1. This is such a lovely, sweet memory. I could just see you quietly coming in the house and sitting and listening....

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  2. This is a beautiful writing about music and a bond it creates between different generations. Even if you don't play, you are always part of it. I am glad that this piece ended with a happy note.

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  3. Nice to see the pictures, & to hear the memory. It is interesting how we think we won't do what our mothers did, but then the connection with that older generation is so strong. I loved how you slipped in the door to listen, & that you remember that.

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  4. What wonderful memories to have of your mom. I liked your observation that playing gave her shelter. Music is a great gift to pass on.

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  5. I love reading the comments after I read your post because I totally agree with what comes before me here. It's a wonderful memory and even though you didn't follow in her footsteps her model is with you,
    Bonnie :)

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  6. The bond of love through music - precious. You captured a beautiful memory. :)

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