It was a beautiful June morning. I would finally be able to purchase something that I had been saving for over the last two years. As I ate my breakfast and got ready to go out, my mind kept wandering to the brand new Yamaha piano I had set my heart on. With such high spirits, nothing could have prepared me for the letdown I would feel later in the day.
I can remember as a child, wanting to learn to play the piano. Some of my friends from school ‘had’ to practice for their lessons. Whenever I was allowed to sit quietly and watch, I would wonder why they disliked the practice sessions so much. I would listen to them for hours, and wish that it was me playing the piano. My grandmother used to play, but now her hands were crippled with arthritis, so the only time I was able to listen to someone was at these times of practice, or when my teacher played the piano. How I loved to hear the sound of those keys being played!
It wasn’t possible for me to take lessons. There were five children in our family of little means, making it impossible for my parents to buy a piano. I didn’t really speak up to my parents about it, because I didn’t want them to feel badly about not having the money for my one wish. I certainly wasn’t deprived as a child and listening to others play whenever possible brought me a lot of pleasure.
When I grew up and married, I had four children of my own. The desire to play the piano had been put in the back of my mind, with much more important things taking priority. I still enjoyed listening to piano music, collecting over the years many tapes of musicians. Once I even attended a concert of one of my favorite musicians. It was then that my desire to play the piano surfaced again.
I expressed my thoughts to my husband that night and he thought it was a great idea. The next trip that we made to the city included checking out music stores and what we might be able to afford. We found that one store offered a rental piano for a reasonable price. It was an older model, but we thought it would be a great way to find out if this was really something I wanted to do without costing us too much. We came home with a piano that night!
The very next week I started taking lessons and loved every minute. I practiced faithfully every day, as often as I could. Some days my fingers hurt from the rigors I was putting them through, but the pain was worth it. I enjoyed this learning process, finally fulfilling a childhood dream.
When my youngest started going to school full time, I started doing some work for a friend, saving the money I made for a new piano. It was a black, upright Yamaha piano that I had seen in the music store. The keys were perfectly weighted, making it a delight to play them. I had only dreamed of ever owning such an instrument, but after two years of saving, I would finally be able to make that dream come true.
This was the day! I had taken the money from my account the day before, and it was safely tucked into my purse. My mother wanted to come with me when I went to the city, so I picked her up and off we went. We enjoyed the drive and chatted about many things while my excitement mounted. I remember thinking about how it would look in my home, and how it would sound when the children and I played it. It was indeed a beautiful day!
When my mother and I entered the store, the salesman was busy, so we went to where the piano was. I set my purse down beside me on the bench and ran my fingers over the keys. Mom walked around the store, looking at this and that. She was as excited for me as I was for myself. I ‘tinkled the ivories’ while I waited for the salesman to finish with the customer before me. Mom caught my attention and motioned for me to come over to her. I jumped up and went over to where she had found some music books. We browsed through them for a few moments, before I realized that I had left my purse on the piano bench. I went straight over to the piano, but when I got there, my purse was not on the bench. It was not there, or anywhere else in the store! I panicked! We told the salesman what had happened, and he quickly called the store manager out to the front of the store. It was obvious that someone had taken my purse, but we had not seen anyone else in the store. The store manager asked me to try to remain calm and he would see what he could do to help.
I felt absolutely betrayed by the human race. How could someone take something that belonged to someone else? I felt such a surge of different emotions, ranging from hurt to anger to dismay. The day that was to be so wonderful, the day that would be the fulfillment of a life long dream had been shattered.
The store manager had left us to take care of this situation. When he said he might be able to help, he meant it. The store had hidden cameras, which when played, revealed that a young man had entered the store, grabbed my purse and left in a hurry. The store manager contacted the security people for the Mall and described the young man. It all happened so fast that the young man had not had a chance to leave the building before being caught, with my purse under his coat.
When my purse was returned to me, I broke down and cried. Mom and I could not believe that we were so fortunate to have it back, the money still tucked inside. Being a victim of crime is not something anyone should have to experience, but many do. I am thankful for the quick thinking of the store manager, as well as the kind assistance of the security people. What almost turned out to be the worst day of my life became the day I fulfilled my dreams.
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