Last night, my sister (Emma) and I had our spring piano recital. Being who we are, we were both excited. The way our teacher does things, one gets to play two pieces per recital. Emma and I both had a piece from the soundtrack of our favorite movie series, Pirates of the Caribbean, along with another piece. It was supposed to be just an ordinary recital. Go there, play our pieces, nibble finger foods and mingle around afterwords. But, it didn't go quite as planned . . .
A Typical Night
The recital started as usual, with younger, less experienced kids starting out and leading up to the more advanced kids.
...then came my sister's turn.
She walked confidently towards the piano, ready to play her pieces. Her first piece went well. A small missed note here and there, but then again, it was kind of a weird piano. Next, she played her second piece; her favorite.
Forgetting . . .
The song started out strong, bursting with her usual confidence.
Oops . . . a missed note here.
Uh-oh . . . there's another one.
She started playing slower, with less enthusiasm.
Then she stopped.
Desperate, she began searching her mind for the note. Where was it?? Our teacher slipped up to the piano, trying to help by tapping out a few notes. But to no avail. The notes had flown from her memory. Emma walked back to her seat, shaking, the tears already starting to flow.
Defeated . . .
As I walked to the piano (I had been placed right after Emma), I could her my sister sobbing. Her sobs faded into the background as my mom took her to the bathroom to comfort her. My heart aching for my baby sister, I sat down and began to play.
Not long after I finished and had returned to my seat, my mom and sister came back. Unsure what to do, I reached across our mom and gave Emma's hand a squeeze.
Heavenly Encouragement
Unbeknownst to me, after Emma and our mom had walked out, a lady (one of the other moms), had followed them. She encouraged Emma to go back and try again, gave her hug, and prayed with her and my mom.
That's what really helped Emma. When that lady mentioned the Lord. Because what she said was so right.
"Sometimes Satan tries to keep us from being successful, from doing well. But God is bigger than Satan, and He can help you play again."
So she played again.
After the last student on the program had played, our piano teacher looked at Emma.
"Do you want to play again?"
Cautiously, Emma nodded and approached the piano once again.
And she played . . .
It was the best she had ever done at a recital. She started off slow, picking up speed gradually until she was at full force. By the time she made a flawless finish, everyone in the room was grinning, and clapped enthusiastically for her.
With a smile on her face,
Emma rose,
Bowed,
And returned to her seat.
She had done it. She had played.
Emma, you are an amazing and beautiful girl. I'm so glad you tried again last night. Getting back up there was hard, but you did it!! I'm so proud of you! I love you sooo much!!! <3 Ro-Ro
Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
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