September
MUSIC Information:
- All year round music
- F Major/D Minor
- 49 Measures
- Cello and Piano
- 3:32 min
- 4 Pages
“September days have the warmth of summer in their briefer hours, but in their lengthening evenings a prophetic breath of autumn.” ― Rowland E. Robinson
HEAVY CLOUDS
Life is anything but fair, and it loves to deliver unexpected and unwanted surprises when I least expect them. In 2020, I was forced to face one of the biggest challenges of my lifetime: a global pandemic that shook the world and left me standing alone with my fears. Every day was filled with more uncertainty, and countless unanswered questions floated through my mind like heavy clouds. Would I survive this? Would my business make it through? Could life ever return to the way it once was?
From the beginning, I knew I wasn't the only one facing such challenges—friends, neighbors, and strangers alike wrestled with their own fears, losses, and uncertainties. Everyone seemed to be holding on in their own way, trying to make sense of a world that had suddenly changed. Knowing that others were fighting their own battles made me feel less isolated, and even in my darkest moments, it felt that people everywhere seemed to be trying to adapt.
CLOSED DOORS
Teaching piano during the pandemic was a challenge. Since March 2020, I've been giving lessons online. I closed the doors of my home-studio and learned how to teach remotely, adapting to a format I had never imagine before. I did not have much of a choice_ just like millions of people around the world. The pandemic forced us to interact with one another in ways we had only imagined, reshaping both work and personal connections.
In January of 2020, just a month after Timothy died, I received a call from a potential student_ a retired lawyer interested in learning to play the piano. Two months after she signed up for lessons, the pandemic swept over us like a vicious, invisible monster.
IS THIS LEGAL?
We knew the danger despite keeping all the health recommendations, but I kept an open mind when my new student declined my invitation for online lessons, so then; we proceeded to meet in person, and for that, I am deeply and truthfully indebted to her. The sanity her companionship alone brought into my life, saved me from losing my own.
At first, I have to admit, it felt like I was doing something illicit by having her over my piano studio. All the streets were empty, most businesses and all schools were closed. The account of people dying around the globe were all over the news. I was in a panic mood, everyone was living in fear of the unknown.
My new student's name was Katherine, and from the beginning it was clear to me, practice time was challenging for her. Practice time?, Under the scary circumstances we were living under, NOBODY had in mind practicing. We all were afraid of dying. Nevertheless, Katherine attended lessons and without failing, week after week, she'd showed up on time.
A SOMBER YEAR
I realized, she kept plugging in to lessons, because she needed, as much as I did, human interaction. It was a difficult time for all. All governments around the world locked down entire countries, recommending isolation as much as possible, and avoiding social gatherings all together. What a somber year.
Katherine and I agreed to wear masks during the sessions, which made my teaching challenging and her learning slow, but we made the best out of it, sometimes we even laughed at ourselves, and soon, we got used to it, both, laughing at ourselves and wearing the uncomfortable mask.
Suddenly, in the beginning of 2020, I found myself alone. I did not know it then, but I needed a companion. Despite the restrictions and the danger of contracting the virus, we both were willing to go ahead with the lessons. I was so very HAPPY to see Katherine every week.
A REMARKABLE LADY
Back then, I was a whole mess, but my new student-friend kept the insanity of it all at bay. We became closed, and for the whole time she took lessons we laughed, we talked, we cried together. Of course we played music, and shared life stories over lunch. What a remarkable lady she was.
I would like to dedicate this duet, from my notebook of pieces to play all year round, to Katherine. I do not know what I'd have done without her companionship. Her presence felt similar to the month of September, of which, in a calendar year, it serves as a mediator preventing us from the unpleasantness of going from hot summer days, to cold winter nights in a heartbeat.
A DOSE OF KINDNESS
Katherine was friendly and kind to me, I did not feel completely alone thanks to her willingness to take piano lessons. The uncertainty of the future was a nightmare, and she made it all bearable just by being there, and I will always remember that.
People say, honesty is the best policy, and I'd completely agree. I believe, in certain circumstances though, a dose of kindness takes you much farther. It can save a life. Remember to always be kind. I know I'll try to be, and when I play this piece, I also know, I will be thinking of Katherine.
Thank you Katherine!
Wherever you are