"Hey, Huien, the music teacher is looking for you."
I felt Roseanna's hand on my shoulder as i turned around to face her. Her cold eyes met mine as she spoke.
"Oh, okay. Where is she now?" I asked.
"She's just inside the music room. Go," Roseanna replied as she pushed me gently in the direction of the music room.
"Miss Lisa? You wanted to see me?" I asked as I wondered why I had been summoned in the first place.
"Yes, Huien. I have decided. I'm going to include you in the performance."Miss Lisa explained. I couldn't believe my ears. "I know mastering four difficult songs in a month is going to be challenging but you're a talented musician and you're going to be great," continued Miss Lisa.
Still stunned, I exchanged looks with Roseanna.
"Well, say something! Cat got your tongue? What do you say?" pressed Miss Lisa.
"Okay, I'll do it," I managed to mumble.
"Good. Rehearsal starts tomorrow, from six to seven. I'll see you at the music room on the third floor." Roseanna and I stared at our young teacher as she walked out of the room.
"I'm actually familiar with the four pieces. But I'm not a talented violinist like you, so I'm not in the performance. But I can help you practice if you want to'" offered Roseanna softly as she looked at the floor.
“Really? Yes, thanks a lot, Rose,” I answered. I grabbed her hand and ran out into the afternoon sun. But my excitement at being chosen to perform soon died as the practice session started.
At the first rehearsal, I was quick to notice that not only was I the youngest musician in the band and I was also the worst. I realized that I had to improve my performance or I would be the one to let everybody down. I could not and did not want to be the violinist who marred our performance. This made me extremely anxious, which made things worse. I could not concentrate or focus and I felt that as time passed, my performance did not improve. It became worse. I was under great pressure and was highly stressed.
Roseanna seemed to sense my anxiety and was present at all our practices. She was patient and urged me on tirelessly. She always had an encouraging word for me, telling me to press on. As time flew, I was standing on thin ice.
Once, after we had practiced for over an hour, I burst into tears of frustration as I struggled with the tough pieces. “I want to quit!” I sobbed as I crumpled onto the floor.
“You want to give up now, after practicing for three weeks? What about all the tears and sweat you’ve put in? It is an honor to be able to perform,” said Roseanna.
“I don’t care. I want to quit now!” I cried.
“You quit now and you’ll be a loser for life!” Roseanna shouted angrily at me before she stomped off in a fit. She slammed the door, leaving me to wallow in my tears and self pity.
“You’ll be a loser for life!” Roseanna’s words echoed in my ears that evening. At that point in time, it dawned on me that I was nor a quitter and did not want to start being one. I decided, I would wipe my tears and get back on my feet and start again. I resumed my daily practice, this time without Roseanna. But I always had a strange feeling that someone was watching me. I would tell myself that it was only my imagination.
Soon, It was the day of our performance. I was surprisingly clam as I stood on the stage. Beautiful music filled the air as we played our pieces. I felt the music flow through my body as I played. My violin and I were one. At the end of our fourth piece, the audience clapped appreciatively. I was delighted that the audience enjoyed our performance.
As I was packing my instrument backstage, I received a text message on my hand-phone. It read,” You were magnificent. I always knew you would do fine.” I smiled as I read the message. I knew who the sender was even though the number was unfamiliar.
Thank you, Roseanna. I couldn’t have done it without you.
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