The beauty of music is found in every soul” were the words of my grandmother. She always managed to bring music into every aspect of her life; whether it was ordinary housework or religious functions, she was ready to sing at any time. Her music was not the only part of her life; she was also the mother of six children and the wife of a prominent farmer. Although her life was complicated and, at many times, unbearable, music was never forsaken; it was one of her treasures. Through her and her treasure I realized what life and death really are. Her perseverance through her problems and her patience with her children and grandchildren has always amazed me.
During elementary school, I remember a period of time when my grandmother stayed over our apartment. Although it was uncomfortable for a few weeks, I loved to hear her stories, especially the ones that were songs. It was fascinating because her songs would reflect her experiences, and goals in life; for example, one of her stories was about village women washing their clothes at the river in India. All through my childhood, I listened to her exciting stories, and, even confronted her with questions that made her laugh throughout the night.
At that moment her laughter and smile were captured in my heart forever. As I grew older, my relationship with my grandmother became less of a priority. Instead I began to forget about my family and became more concerned with friends and schoolwork. It was as if old relationships were broken to form new ones; I didn’t have enough time to fulfill all the commitments I had. I’ll never forget the last time I saw my grandmother; she was planning a trip to India.
The Essay on A Life’s Music
Taking a deeper look at a passage, pages 5-6, out of Andreï Makine’s book A Life’s Music, you get a real sense of his style and the appropriateness of its title. Makine shows his skills as a writer in this book, you read so much music in the book and when read out loud it is literally music to your ears. The book almost flows as you read it and so makes it a joy to read. He uses a lot of literary ...
She was packing for weeks and was waiting eagerly for the plane ride “home.” I went to visit her before she left; her frail body seemed as if it was lifeless. I never realized how much pain she was in until I saw her that morning taking her five pills. I tried to persuade her to stay with us; however, she still insisted that she was in perfect condition to go “home.” That was the last time I saw her, physically. She had a successful plane ride to India, but unfortunately she never experienced the return flight. Two days after she was settled in her home, she died in her sleep. It was the kind of death everyone dreams about-no pain.
Although she died silently, the pain was still felt miles away. At first, I though she was just resting in India, but, I realized she was dead when I went to India the following summer. I saw a school in her town, which dedicated the next ninety-eight years to musical education. It was at this time that I realized what my grandmother’s life truly meant; it was a path of obstacles that were achieved successfully. The reward, however, came after her death. After walking through the school, I realized that even after her death she lived on through the walls of the school and especially through my memories of her.
Realizations often come after the fact; for example, it was after my grandmother’s death that I realized how precious and beautiful life really is. It was through her experiences, even that of death, that I realized the meaning of life: it is the obstacles and challenges that we meet in life and the way in which we resolve them that shape our lives. My grandmother resolved her conflicts through her folkloric tunes; it was her life, and music was the tool that helped her through it. Because her conflicts were settled, she went “home” silently. Her life helped me realize to treasure all the moments while her death showed me how God rewards those who live their life truthfully.
