Twice a week after lunch, clutching the lesson book to her chest, she leaves her third-grade class, and marches up the hall to the music room. She’ll spend half an hour with Sister Yvonne. The child is happy to see the nun’s kind eyes and the veins on her hands, as she demonstrates the lesson. The child’s hand barely reaches the expansive keys.
From the corner of her eye, she can see the nun reach for rosary beads that hang to her side, soon her head will list to the right, toward the picture of Saint Cecelia. When the hand on the clock dips to the half hour, the child will scuffle the pages of the lesson book, and dawdle long enough for the nun to awaken and give her a hug.
At home, her mother’s porcelain figurines dance atop the upright. As royalty, the Lady wears a court dress with brocade neckline, the Gentleman, a three-cornered hat and waistcoat. The mother tries to teach the child, but her disappointment quickly turns to rage, that might cause the statues to wobble and crash to the floor, if the keys are struck too hard.
Summer 2021
