Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a
mother took her boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated,
the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle
to greet her. Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the
concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way
through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE." When the houselights
dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her
seat and discovered that the child was missing. Suddenly, the
curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on
stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard,
innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that
moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved
to the piano, and whispered in he boy's ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing."
Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and
began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the
other side of the child and he added a running obbligato.
Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening
situation into a wonderfully creative experience. And the
audience was mesmerized.
Whatever our situation in life and history--however outrageous,
however desperate, whatever dry spell of the spirit, whatever
dark night of the soul-- God is whispering deep within our beings,
"Don't quit. Keep playing. You are not alone, Together we will transform
the broken patterns into a masterwork of my creative art. Together,
we will mesmerize the world with our song of peace."