Time Now for the Vinyl Cafe Story Exchange by Stuart McLean

Author:Stuart McLean [McLean, Stuart]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Humorous, General, Short Stories (Single Author), Holidays
ISBN: 9780143176053
Google: pCU0ngEACAAJ
Publisher: Penguin Books
Published: 2014-09-09T07:00:00+00:00

Brighton, Ontario

OVER THE RAINBOW

Every time I hear “Over the Rainbow” it brings tears to my eyes, for a very good reason.

Nineteen eighty-one was a bad year. My husband died early that year and, a few months later, in July, I almost lost my eldest son, Nick.

Nick was a music student at Mohawk College in Hamilton.

He was born with a medical condition that we became aware of when he was seven. Because this condition limited him physically, he quickly fell in love with music. Music was Nick’s life.

A few months after his father’s death, Nick became ill and went into the hospital in Hamilton.

The neurosurgeon told me that Nick needed surgery, but that the risk was high and if he survived he could be completely or partially paralyzed.

Nick’s brother and I sat through the six-and-a-half-hour surgery in the hospital waiting room.

Finally we were told that Nick had come through okay but that we’d have to wait and see regarding his mobility.

A day later Nick slid into a coma. He’d had a stroke. He did recover, and was eventually sent to another hospital for physiotherapy, but the prognosis was bad. He was told that he most likely wouldn’t walk again and that he’d never again play the piano.

Nick went into a deep depression. He refused to talk to his music teacher or students from Mohawk. He wouldn’t even listen to music.

His brother and I tried to encourage him; we told him he had to believe in himself. We told him that anything was possible.

Months passed. Each Sunday I would leave my home in St. Catharines and go and visit Nick in the hospital.

By the time six months had passed, Nick was able to talk and “walk” himself around the hospital in a wheelchair.

One Sunday I arrived at the ward for our visit and found that Nick wasn’t there. I was desperately worried about him until one of the other patients said he’d gone down to the common room.

I hurried down there and found Nick sitting at the piano. He was trying to play “Over the Rainbow.” His fingers were collapsing on the keyboard and tears were streaming down his face. This was the turning point for him. After another six months of therapy, Nick came out of the hospital and returned to complete his degree at Mohawk College.

At the graduation concert Nick walked onto the stage, threw down his canes, limped to the piano, and played a concerto he’d written. He received a standing ovation. It was the proudest day of my life.

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