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Literature Text
"Stay awake, get a grip and get out you're safe,
From the weight of the world just take,
A second to set things straight.
I'll be fine even though I'm not always right,
I can count on the sun to shine,
Dedication takes a lifetime,
But dreams only last for a night."
But only dedication can make your dreams come true. A lifetime of dedication. Sometimes you have to leave other dreams behind. Sometimes you have to leave people behind, even after they've helped to propel you forward. They get discarded on the side of the road, a road called Passion Street. And only after you've walked down Passion Street, can you turn left and walk down Dedication Road, to reach Glory Lane.
I vaguely remember the day those men brought the old piano into my house. It was old then, and it's old now. An aging, brown upright piano that had belonged to my great-grandmother, my mother's grandmother. I watched, my eyes wide, as they placed the piano along the wall, taking in the many black and white keys (52 white and 36 black to be exact, by now I've counted them so many times that it would be impossible to forget), not as white as I'm sure they once were.
Not long after the men left, my mother set herself down at the piano and began to play, at least what she could remember. And one by one she took our hands, mine, my sister's, and my brother's, pulled us to the piano, and helped us move our little fingers across the keyboard.
It wasn't long until I started piano lessons. Her name was Mrs. Burg and she would be my piano teacher. I remember all of those tantrums I'd thrown on her piano bench, the threats that I would never play again, throwing my books and sheet music across the room, slamming my hands down on the keys angrily, making a god awful noise.
But I couldn't stay away. And I always felt guilty for throwing the books, and slamming the keys. Sometimes I cried because I couldn't bare to think of what would have happened if I'd hurt the it (to me, it too had and heart, just like a human).
6 Years Later
I was nervous as hell. I was going to sing for the first time publicly. It was Rock for Rwanda, just an elementary school fund-raiser, so there weren't that many people, but I still felt like I was going to throw up.
It's for a good cause, I told myself. You'll help earn money for lap tops for people in Rwanda, you can't back out now. So I sat down at the piano played the introduction. Taking a deep breath, I leaned into the microphone, opened my mouth, and began to sing.
1 Year Later
"Are you sure that's what you want to spend your money on?" My mom asked, giving me a weary look.
"Positive." I replied, nodding firmly. I grabbed the guitar off the shelf, a black electric with skulls on it. It was only a First Act, a cheep brand without a good reputation, but it was going to be mine. All mine. I'll name it Izark, I thought.
A few days later it was New Year's Eve and I was asked what my New Year's resolution was.
"My New Year's resolution is to learn to play my guitar." I said with a smile.
So I did. About a month later I began taking lessons from a women who lived down the street from me. It was the only New Year's resolution that I've ever followed through on.
Once I thought my playing was good enough, I began performing in any shows I could. School talent shows, Cabin Fever, Back Packs For Kids, Norfolk Talent Competition, open mike nights. What ever I could get my hands on. I've done so many that the stage fright from that first song at Rock For Rwanda is long gone.
1 Year Later
"This ship is sinking,
I'm thinking, I'm done for,
I watch as the sails disappear under water,
Cause I'm no captain yet"
Now comes the painful part where people get discarded on the side of Passion Street.
I was at Mrs. Burg's house, enjoying the sound of her beautiful piano, so much newer and well kept than my own. I had no clue that it was going to be my second last lesson with her.
When I'd finished my piece she told me she was retiring. It was as though she was commenting on how I'd played the song she'd assigned me. She said it so normally, but it felt like a punch to the gut.
But I smiled and nodded, saying I understood.
But I didn't understand. I didn't understand at all. When I got home I went up to my room and cried. I felt angry and abandoned. Like I was the one being discarded on the side of the road, not her. I'd spent about half an hour every week with Mrs. Burg for the past 7 and half years of my life. I always knew that there was going to be a next week. It was the one thing I could count on. And then all of a sudden it was gone. I would have one more lesson and then my one constant would end forever. It had been taken away from me. She had taken it from me.
I few hours later Mrs. Burg called me.
"I cried after I told you, you know. It wasn't an easy decision, I didn't want to. So don't feel like I abandoned you. I'll still be here if you need me, I'm just a phone call away." She reassured me through the phone, my anger gone. It made a lump rise in my throat again, one that I couldn't seem to get rid of. So after we'd hung up I went up stairs to my room and cried again, exhausted but amazed that I still had so many tears left.
A few weeks later I'd started taking piano and guitar lessons from a guy recommended by a friend. I spent about a year taking lessons from him before I told him I didn't want to take lessons any more.
I'd dreaded my lessons with him. He didn't understand me, he wasn't prepared to help me reach my goals. I never learned much from him, and he just made me miss Mrs. Burg even more. He just wasn't the same. I cried several times over it during the duration of that year.
6 Months Later
I'd finally found a new piano teacher. One who would understand me, and believe in me. Who would help me accomplish my goals, even though some thought it wasn't doable.
She is currently helping me get my Grade 8 in piano in one year, even though I've never taken an exam before. A few told me it would take me several years, some said I should start at Grade 5. Our goal is for me to have my Grade 9 but playing at a Grade 10 level, to have my Grade 3 theory, and my grade 3 harmony by the time I graduate so that I can go to University and study music.
It's funny how an old piano can start such an important thing for someone, such a huge passion, such large hopes and dreams of university and recording studios, stages and crowds of one million. And now that I've been down Passion Street, I've turned left to walk down Dedication Road, hoping, swearing, and promising, that someday, I'll walk down Glory Lane.
"With every step you climb another mountain,
With every breath it's harder to believe,
You make it through the pain,
Weather the hurricanes,
To get to that one place,
Just when you think the road is going no where,
Just when you almost gave up on your dreams,
They take you by the hand and show you that you can,
There are no boundaries."
"" 1 and 2-Stay Awake by All Time Low
"" 3-No Boundaries by Adam Lambert
From the weight of the world just take,
A second to set things straight.
I'll be fine even though I'm not always right,
I can count on the sun to shine,
Dedication takes a lifetime,
But dreams only last for a night."
But only dedication can make your dreams come true. A lifetime of dedication. Sometimes you have to leave other dreams behind. Sometimes you have to leave people behind, even after they've helped to propel you forward. They get discarded on the side of the road, a road called Passion Street. And only after you've walked down Passion Street, can you turn left and walk down Dedication Road, to reach Glory Lane.
I vaguely remember the day those men brought the old piano into my house. It was old then, and it's old now. An aging, brown upright piano that had belonged to my great-grandmother, my mother's grandmother. I watched, my eyes wide, as they placed the piano along the wall, taking in the many black and white keys (52 white and 36 black to be exact, by now I've counted them so many times that it would be impossible to forget), not as white as I'm sure they once were.
Not long after the men left, my mother set herself down at the piano and began to play, at least what she could remember. And one by one she took our hands, mine, my sister's, and my brother's, pulled us to the piano, and helped us move our little fingers across the keyboard.
It wasn't long until I started piano lessons. Her name was Mrs. Burg and she would be my piano teacher. I remember all of those tantrums I'd thrown on her piano bench, the threats that I would never play again, throwing my books and sheet music across the room, slamming my hands down on the keys angrily, making a god awful noise.
But I couldn't stay away. And I always felt guilty for throwing the books, and slamming the keys. Sometimes I cried because I couldn't bare to think of what would have happened if I'd hurt the it (to me, it too had and heart, just like a human).
6 Years Later
I was nervous as hell. I was going to sing for the first time publicly. It was Rock for Rwanda, just an elementary school fund-raiser, so there weren't that many people, but I still felt like I was going to throw up.
It's for a good cause, I told myself. You'll help earn money for lap tops for people in Rwanda, you can't back out now. So I sat down at the piano played the introduction. Taking a deep breath, I leaned into the microphone, opened my mouth, and began to sing.
1 Year Later
"Are you sure that's what you want to spend your money on?" My mom asked, giving me a weary look.
"Positive." I replied, nodding firmly. I grabbed the guitar off the shelf, a black electric with skulls on it. It was only a First Act, a cheep brand without a good reputation, but it was going to be mine. All mine. I'll name it Izark, I thought.
A few days later it was New Year's Eve and I was asked what my New Year's resolution was.
"My New Year's resolution is to learn to play my guitar." I said with a smile.
So I did. About a month later I began taking lessons from a women who lived down the street from me. It was the only New Year's resolution that I've ever followed through on.
Once I thought my playing was good enough, I began performing in any shows I could. School talent shows, Cabin Fever, Back Packs For Kids, Norfolk Talent Competition, open mike nights. What ever I could get my hands on. I've done so many that the stage fright from that first song at Rock For Rwanda is long gone.
1 Year Later
"This ship is sinking,
I'm thinking, I'm done for,
I watch as the sails disappear under water,
Cause I'm no captain yet"
Now comes the painful part where people get discarded on the side of Passion Street.
I was at Mrs. Burg's house, enjoying the sound of her beautiful piano, so much newer and well kept than my own. I had no clue that it was going to be my second last lesson with her.
When I'd finished my piece she told me she was retiring. It was as though she was commenting on how I'd played the song she'd assigned me. She said it so normally, but it felt like a punch to the gut.
But I smiled and nodded, saying I understood.
But I didn't understand. I didn't understand at all. When I got home I went up to my room and cried. I felt angry and abandoned. Like I was the one being discarded on the side of the road, not her. I'd spent about half an hour every week with Mrs. Burg for the past 7 and half years of my life. I always knew that there was going to be a next week. It was the one thing I could count on. And then all of a sudden it was gone. I would have one more lesson and then my one constant would end forever. It had been taken away from me. She had taken it from me.
I few hours later Mrs. Burg called me.
"I cried after I told you, you know. It wasn't an easy decision, I didn't want to. So don't feel like I abandoned you. I'll still be here if you need me, I'm just a phone call away." She reassured me through the phone, my anger gone. It made a lump rise in my throat again, one that I couldn't seem to get rid of. So after we'd hung up I went up stairs to my room and cried again, exhausted but amazed that I still had so many tears left.
A few weeks later I'd started taking piano and guitar lessons from a guy recommended by a friend. I spent about a year taking lessons from him before I told him I didn't want to take lessons any more.
I'd dreaded my lessons with him. He didn't understand me, he wasn't prepared to help me reach my goals. I never learned much from him, and he just made me miss Mrs. Burg even more. He just wasn't the same. I cried several times over it during the duration of that year.
6 Months Later
I'd finally found a new piano teacher. One who would understand me, and believe in me. Who would help me accomplish my goals, even though some thought it wasn't doable.
She is currently helping me get my Grade 8 in piano in one year, even though I've never taken an exam before. A few told me it would take me several years, some said I should start at Grade 5. Our goal is for me to have my Grade 9 but playing at a Grade 10 level, to have my Grade 3 theory, and my grade 3 harmony by the time I graduate so that I can go to University and study music.
It's funny how an old piano can start such an important thing for someone, such a huge passion, such large hopes and dreams of university and recording studios, stages and crowds of one million. And now that I've been down Passion Street, I've turned left to walk down Dedication Road, hoping, swearing, and promising, that someday, I'll walk down Glory Lane.
"With every step you climb another mountain,
With every breath it's harder to believe,
You make it through the pain,
Weather the hurricanes,
To get to that one place,
Just when you think the road is going no where,
Just when you almost gave up on your dreams,
They take you by the hand and show you that you can,
There are no boundaries."
"" 1 and 2-Stay Awake by All Time Low
"" 3-No Boundaries by Adam Lambert
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the highlights of my music life so far. 
written for english class. enjoy 
quotes are from All Time Low and Adam Lambert
written for english class. enjoy quotes are from All Time Low and Adam Lambert
© 2011 - 2024 Musical-Ink
Comments4
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This almost made me cry. I've never been that into music, but to "see" how important it is to your life, well I feel like I've gotten to know you so much better now. This was an amazing life story, the lyrics fit very well. If I was you're English teach I'd definitely give you a 10/10! 
Amazing story! Save this!!! You may want to read it again one day. ^-^
Amazing story! Save this!!! You may want to read it again one day. ^-^