Mr. and Mrs. Brown were the kind of elderly couple that struck you somewhere between amusing and annoying. Everything about them seemed out of date. Their car, one of those massive behemoths of the 1970's, signaled that a senior citizen was about, driving slowly, cautiously, easing from place to place. You might think they were such a cute old couple, unless you happened to be behind them in traffic. Mr. Brown always did the driving since Mrs. Brown had very poor eyesight.
Mr. Brown's clothes, while neat, appeared to be the ones he had been wearing when he met Mrs. Brown. He had worn them for so long that the fabric had taken on the shape of his wallet, pocket knife, and keys. Mrs. Brown, smelling of powder and hair spray, wore thick glasses and carried a giant purse. They were a perfect match.
The Browns seemed to be one of the myriad of senior citizens that have been largely passed by as the world had changed. They no doubt had to watch their money very closely and probably didn't ask for much. Like so many retirees with time on their hands, they are regulars at the bank, the post office, grocery, and pharmacy. When they stop appearing at the pick up window at the pharmacy, this will largely go unnoticed.
I knew the Browns because she was our children's piano teacher. When we had first moved to that community, we were told that a particular piano academy was the best place for our children to study, that piano students there had one many awards. But the teachers that had been recommended to us were all full and were not taking new students. Only Mrs. Brown had room for new students.
I suspect some thought she might not be a good teacher. I said earlier that she had poor eyesight. In truth, she was almost blind. She had a large magnifying glass mounted above the piano so that, looking through it, she could see the notes as she pounded out the beat with a stick. She had an antiquated system of rewarding students for effort that used terms like, "Super," and "Super-duper." Mrs. Brown was about as 'un-hip' as a person could be, but her young students held her in high esteem and I am about tell you why I believe that was the case.
Mrs. Brown's recitals were elaborate affairs, featuring students from kindergarten to adults. Mr. Brown was always her helper, handing out the 'super-dupers' and snapping photos. Mrs. Brown would often leave messages on our home answering machine, reminding the children that there was going to be a a rehearsal for the dress-rehearsal for the recital. Because our answering machine had our daughter Margaret's voice on the greeting informing the caller that they should leave a message, Mrs Brown always addressed her message to Margaret. Speaking with what must have been a South Carolina or Georgia accent, "Mawgret Darrrling, don't forget to bring $3.50 to your lesson for your music book.
During a certain period of time, we had a lot of expenses and were trying to find ways to trim our budget. We decided to cease having our children take piano lessons. The strain of reminding them to practice, the time taking them to lessons and recitals, along with the cost, were all things we felt we could do without. Stopping piano lessons seemed to be the thing to do.
Mrs Brown called me to ask why the children were no longer coming to lessons. I told her that we were trying to cut expenses and had decided that piano lessons could stop. Mrs. Brown wouldn't have any of that. She said that she would teach the children for free. She went on to explain that as a little girl, her parents couldn't afford piano lessons and that her teacher had taught her anyway. She had vowed she would do the same for children that wanted to learn to play the piano.
I was so stunned and frankly humbled by this that I hardly knew how to respond. It was not difficult to see that the Browns were not prosperous people. I am certain that I could afford to pay for the lessons more easily than Mrs. Brown could affrord to do without our payments. But, I reluctantly accepted her offer saying that we would allow the children to continue, and that we hoped we could begin to pay for the lessons again in the future. And this is what we did.
People like Mrs. Brown do not get much recognition in the world. They don't stand out in such a manner so as to draw the attention of society. But, most of us think and behave in ways that have been modeled for us by people we have encountered in our lives. When I have a chance to do something for someone else, even though it doesn't benefit me, I think of Mrs. Brown. If I had never been the recipient of such kindness, then I suppose I could justify never extending it to another. But, I have experienced that, just as Mrs. Brown experienced it as a child, and together with her, I vow to extend it to others.
I wonder what kindness was modeled before the teacher who gave Mrs. Brown free piano lessons as a child.
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