Maternal Appreciation

Thank you, Mother, for letting me take piano lessons.

When she was in the fifth grade, Fiorella wanted to learn to play the piano because "all" the other girls were doing it.  It turned out she had a minor talent and advanced quickly through the beginner books.  She hit her zenith in the seventh grade with "Fur Elise"--after which she quit as the hormones burgeoned, the homework increased, and her free time decreased.  But the piano still sat it the front room, and she still played it from time to time.

A long dry period began when Fio went off to college, then married early.  Several years later, she and Husband picked up an old upright, Fio collected all her piano books from her mother, and she started playing a little again.  However, she was really into voice, in which she had a major talent. And working on her advanced degree in linguistics had to take precedence over both.

Through the years, Fio sang a lot, directed a couple of choruses, fooled around with composition, and generally enjoyed herself with music.  The root of it all was those three years of piano lessons in the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades. Nowadays, Fio doesn't sing much, has handed in the baton, and writes romances rather than music, but she still enjoys going into the front room and banging out her old favorites on the piano.

Thank you, Mother.