A little pat

Taught at school, and had a most rewarding lesson thus far today.

One of my kids, a young girl. When I first took over her lessons, she was one of the students who always had a terrified look plastered on their faces when they enter the studio. Like I'm a fire-breathing, ten-armed, blue-skinned monster. Asking her a question will always make her whimper, getting her to learn a new song was like giving her a death sentence.

You get the idea.

Today, after we had the practical lesson (where she had been very enthusiastic about perfecting the song we learnt last week), I sat down to mark her homework. She stayed at the piano and played songs we learnt previously. On her own. Flawlessly and with very obvious enjoyment.

At that moment, it felt like a pat on my back.

This girl had been phobic about playing in front of me. And most kids usually don't bother replaying old songs they learnt long ago.

But she played, every single one, in the book. It was like a mini-recital of her own.

I'll never forget that moment.