Saturday morning, after getting cleaned up, and spending some time with Nikki, I headed to my parents in Clinton, while Rod, Brandon and Nikki went to a parade. (Tannya and Kate went to a friend's baptism.) I spent the next couple of hours getting my mom showered, dressed, combed and make-up applied. My dad used the spare time to run some errands and fix a sprinkler. Then everyone came over to their house for a few minutes before Rod and I drove Grandfather and Grandmother to the McKay Dee Hospital.
But this wasn't a regular hospital visit, as they soon came to find out. We walked in the main doors, and Rod moved a couple of large chairs over by the 9' Yamaha grand piano that is prominent in the large lobby. The lobby is open all the way up the four stories, and sound from the piano can be heard one each floor.
After the chairs were in place, close to the keyboard, Rod and I helped seat my parents in the comfortable chairs, then I pulled out some of the music I had brought, and began to play for them. After each piece I turned to see if they liked it, or remembered when I had played a particular piece as a teenager. I knew my mom would enjoy my playing, but I was extremely touched by the tears I often saw in my father's eyes.
After nearly an hour of playing, I finished and said, "I hope it was a good investment of your money..." referring to the thousands of dollars my parents paid for pianos, lessons, music books, gas money and their time. My father quietly said, "Oh yes, it was worth it."
No comments:
Post a Comment