the gift of music

I have known music in my life, all of my life. One of the earliest memories I have is of my whole family, all excited, coming down to the Twin Cities to buy a stereo. AND, the first record we bought that day was The Lennon Sisters Best Loved Catholic Hymns. (I fell in love with their voices and couldn't wait until Duluth got the channel that had Lawrence Welk on it, which happened years later.) Then, a couple years later, we bought the Sound of Music movie soundtrack when it came out after the movie did. I knew every single song within days. (I played it over and over!) The other precious memory I have is my father, who really could NOT play the piano, playing a most intricate piece, the name of which I will probably never know but I could hum it for you. He played with a great flourish, as if he was the grandest piano player in the world. I loved that so much! I could never quite believe he could "pull it out of his hat" the way he did, given he'd never had a lesson in his life. It was the only thing he could play and it became a gift to me whenever he played it. He also whistled ALL the time. We knew Dad was home by hearing his whistling before we ever saw him come through the door.

It was my father's desire that his children play the piano. To that end, he bought an old upright piano for $25 so that we could all practice on it. And, practice we did! I remember being very irritated one time because Mom made me practice while all my neighborhood friends were running around outside the window, laughing at me and having fun. That half hour seemed to drag on forever! Little did I know what a blessing that discipline would be in my life. It helped me when I was in college and the requirement was to practice 4 hours every day and 8 hours during the months preceding any recital. It's also helped me in many other ways unrelated to playing the piano. By the way, piano lessons cost 75 cents back then. It was well worth every penny!

My sisters, Mary and Pat, and I all eventually made our livings (or at least partially) playing for Church services and masses. My sister Kathy took lessons long enough to be able to play for enjoyment and I don't believe my brother Tom ever took lessons, which now seems odd. Maybe he took for a little while but never became proficient at it.

From the beginning, I loved, loved, loved playing the piano (unless, of course, there was something more exciting going on in the front yard!). And, this skill has brought me so many blessings throughout my life. Playing for Mass is, for me, an opportunity to praise God in the most beautiful and intimate way I can. The blessing of it continues to reverberate within my soul in new ways all the time. The piano is truly the instrument of my soul!

Then, there's the appreciation I have for beautiful music. Bach's Violin Concerto in d minor for Two Violins is probably my most favorite piece of music in the whole world, followed by his violin concertos in a minor and E Major. I drift off into another world whenever I listen to this most heavenly piece!

The older I get, the less I find myself listening to rock, even soft rock, or oldies, as I once did. I'm into classical music or liturgical music much more than ever. These soothe my soul.

I believe it is so important that parents give the gift of music to their children. We now know that music helps the development of the brain in many ways. And, I know it can be a gift that lasts a lifetime because it has been that for me. Sometimes, I wish that I could bring a piano into the pregnancy center to play for our clients and to teach them and their children how to play. I wonder sometimes what the lack of good music is doing to them. In those moments, I thank God for the exquisite blessing of music in my life.