MOTHER: Now, I'm finally going to tell you about when we lived in Lima. We were just settling in because your father and I had come from Trujillo and Cajamarca. A lady from the church named PANCHA invited us to stay at her house until we found our own. Back then, it was just you, PETER, and REBECA; they stayed at the house while your father and I worked. One time, you were left alone because your siblings had gone to school and Sister PANCHA had gone to the market. She had a little monkey as a pet, and you used to tease it. That day, you teased it so much that the monkey bit your hand and you started bleeding. When we got home, we bandaged your hand.
ME: That's strange, I don't remember that at all.
MOTHER: You had an accident, don't you remember? Besides, you were only 4 years old when that happened.
ME: Oh (I grab my head). Now I understand why I don't remember things.
After that, we ate the cake and went to sleep. The birthday ended at 9:00 p.m.
THE WORST VIOLIN CLASS
My little brother was already 5 years old and could start learning violin with MISS AIDA. He started going day after day, but sometimes he would forget his music notebook, so he would take mine instead. One time, he left and I didn't realize he had taken my book; my mother noticed I was looking for something.
MOTHER: What are you looking for, Angelo?
ME: Mom, have you seen my music book? I can't find it.
MOTHER: Oh, Angelo! If you were more organized, you would find it.
As the minutes passed, there were only 5 minutes left before I had to leave for my class. My mother approached me.
MOTHER: I assume you found your book by now, right?
ME: Mom, I left it right here, but it's gone.
MOTHER: It's almost time! Find it now! (She speaks very angrily).
Time passes.
MOTHER: That's enough! Come on, let's go, you're going to be late. (She pulls me by the arm forcefully).
ME: OW! That hurts!
MOTHER: How embarrassing for the Miss! What is she going to think? That this mother doesn't teach her son to be organized? She's going to have to lend you her book. I'm doing this because you are irresponsible!
In those days, children were hit as discipline and it was normal; there was no such thing as reporting abuse—back then, that was like a fairy tale. In that moment, I saw the anger in her eyes. She grabbed a belt and, without a hint of mercy, she hit me. She left my back aching, or rather, my whole body. When we were at the corner before arriving, she told me:
MOTHER: Stop crying if you don't want me to hit you harder.
ME: (Sobbing) Yes... mother.
I wiped my tears and stopped crying, although my eyes were still red. When we arrived, my brother appeared and said: "Here." I snatched the notebook from his hand forcefully and looked at my mother with anger.
(In that moment, I felt something inside me change. I went from being a boy who obeyed his mother in everything to someone who questions orders. My personality changed; I began to mature and see everything differently).
He tried to apologize to me, and I told him: "Go to..."
MISS: Leave him be; Luka has received "plenty of love" from his mother today.
When I entered the Miss's house, she gave me some candy and asked what happened. I told her, and she apologized for the joke she had made. I, with my new way of thinking, told her seriously and calmly:
ME: It's okay. It doesn't matter anymore; it already happened.
MISS: Yes, you're right, although your mother wasn't very fair.
ME: Yes… I know. She has always been like that. My brother is going in now, and I bet she won't hit him. Later, she'll try to buy me off with a treat and I'll accept it, but that resentment and the forgiveness I give her won't be real.
(I felt like my whole mind unlocked. My thinking had matured).
MISS: WOW! You look different; that hit on the head really changed you (She says it looking a bit surprised). But anyway, let's stop talking and start. Begin by warming up: second string, A (LA).
ME: Yes. (I take out my violin and play). A – B – C – D – C – B – A – B – C – D – C – B – A – B – C – D – C – B – A (Increasing speed each time).
After playing for about 2 minutes, the Miss told me:
MISS: Very good, you did it faster than last time. Now take out your book... oh right, I was going to give you a new score.
In that moment, my mind exploded. If what happened in Chimbote hadn't been enough, this time I wouldn't forgive my mother (something I forgot to mention is that when we left Chimbote, she told me "stop crying now, have a chocolate," and she bought me off with that).
MISS: Put the score in your folder and start playing. By the way, next month there will be a concert with my other students.
ME: You have more students? I thought my brother and I were the only ones.
MISS: No, of course not! I have more. For this concert, we will meet more days to practice, and you will play two songs. Your two brothers can also play the violin in the concert.
(At that time, my brothers were in middle/high school, one in 7th grade and another in 10th grade).
ME: Miss, I'll be honest with you: if I tell them, they'll just tell me to get lost. But if you tell my mom, they will accept.
MISS: I see (She laughs a little). The song I'm going to give you is called Long, Long Ago, and for the concert, you're also going to help my beginner students with Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Sweet Candy. The other song is Hunter's Chorus. Look, it starts like this—you do it with staccato (a technique to cut the note short).
(MISS grabs her violin and starts playing). G-D-G-A-B-D-B-C-D-D-E-D-B-D-D-D-D-D-C-B-A-D-D-D-C-D-B-D-C-D-B-A-G-D-D-D. G-D-G-A-B-D-B-C-D-D-E(4)-D-B-D-D-D-D-D-C-B-A-D-B-A-G-D-B(4th string)-D-G(4th string).
MISS: And silence; from the silence onwards, it repeats.
ME: Okay Miss, looks easy.
At first, I did well, but when I tried to do it fast, I didn't do the staccatos correctly. Miss told me we had time and it wasn't necessary to push myself too hard. (But the truth was I wanted to master it right there so I wouldn't have to practice at home, because my mom would get annoying since she is a musician, and my brother Peter also knows a lot more than me).
After finishing, my mother came to pick me up.
MISS: Ma'am, there will be concerts next month. Your two sons, Luka and Peter, can come to play as well.
MOTHER: Yes, of course. I'll be sending them to practice. How is Angelo doing?
MISS: He's doing well; today he learned a song instantly.
(We walked a block and my mother said to me):
MOTHER: I'm sorry, Angelo. I didn't know what had happened. I'll buy you a treat.
ME: Yes, it's fine, and I forgive you.
MOTHER: Yes, of course, son (She looks at me surprised).
(She knew she was buying my forgiveness, but it surprised her that I said "I forgive you" so directly, since it was usually implied that the treat meant forgiveness. It left her a bit confused). When I finished the chocolate, we went back home; my brother approached me, but I pushed him away since he had caused all of this.
To be honest, I took out that anger on him because my mother was stronger. Thanks to that, today I can analyze everything better, and I would do it even better if I hadn't hit my head. Sometimes I think that what I did to save my friend was a mistake because of how it changed my life... until we met again.
NEXT CAP 13: THE CONCERT
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