I read about the performance of a most inspiring musician. Itzhak Perlman, who is a concert violinist that was stricken with polio as a child. He has braces on both legs and walks slowly and painfully. In one of his concerts a string broke on his violin. Instead of going through the time consuming process to get a replacement string, Itzhak played a symphonic work with three strings instead of the usual four strings. It's supposed to be impossible to play a symphonic work on three strings, but that night Itzhak refused to know that. You could see him modulating, changing and recomposing the piece in his head. At one point it sounded like he was detuning the strings to get new sounds from them that they had never made before. After he finished the piece, the applause was thunderous. He smiled, wiped the sweat from his bow, raised his bow to quiet the audience, and then said-not boastfully, but in a quiet, pensive, reverent tone, "You know, sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left." This poem is dedicated to Itzhak Perlman and all those committed to passionately making the most beautiful music possible with what they have left.
MUSIC WITH WHAT'S LEFT
Each human is unique,
Something special,
Some are born handicapped,
Others become handicapped later,
It may be physical,
Or mental,
Whatever form it takes,
Whenever it happens,
No matter how slight it is,
It leaves us at a disadvantage,
Areas where we struggle,
Or can't perform at all,
Whatever life hands us,
Whether a full cup,
Or one that's almost empty,
Or somewhere in between,
Our attitude is so important,
We can be whiners,
Or winners,
A blessing to others,
With our positive attitude,
Kind actions,
Or a curse,
With our negative words,
Self centered actions,
Whatever we have left,
To make music with,
We need to use it,
Chose to live passionately,
With purpose,
Seek to make beautiful music,
By discovering our gifts,
Using them to glorify Elohim,
Bring his life to others.
