A Place in the Middle

1

I woke up at the sound of Chopin's "Farewell" Waltz playing in my head. It has a simple and sweet melody and I can't get it out of my mind for days now. I knew I had to play it today just to clear the melody off of my head.

Biglang tumunog ang alarm ko. It's 6 am in the morning. Tinanggal ko na ang kumot sa ibabaw ko at inayos ang kama. Dumiretso ako sa bathroom at naghilamos at saka bumaba para kumain.

Naabutan ko roon si mommy na naghahain ng breakfast kaya ngumiti ako. "Good morning." I greeted.

She smiled softly at me and geeeted me back. Naupo na ako sa harapan at nagsimulang kumain. "Nasaan po si daddy?"

"Maaga siyang umalis kasi may urgent meeting daw sa office. Here, eat the eggs too." Abot niya sa akin kaya kumuha naman ako doon.

Pagkatapos kong kumain, tumayo na ako saka umakyat sa taas para mag-ayos para pumasok. 

After I showered, I changed into the clothes I'd prepared the night before. I wore a beige button-down shirt, the sleeves folded up to my elbows and it was tucked in light blue high waist jeans paired with white sneakers. I got my tote bag and checked my room for anything I forgot and then went down.

"I'll be home late, mommy. I have a group work." Paalam ko and tumango naman siya. Pinayuhan niya ako na wag masyadong magpa-late at dumiretso agad sa paguwi saka ako lumabas at sumakay na sa taxi.

Minsan lang ako magtaxi kasi magastos pero kapag masyadong mainit, taxi talaga ang kinukuha ko. Habang naghihintay, kinuha ko muna ang music score mula sa tote bag saka binasa iyon. I have a new repertoire this semester and luckily, I was given the freedom to choose what I want to play. My professor only gave me the categories and the list of composers then I was free to pick.

It was not that hard to understand since I have been solidifying the pieces into my head, I just need some polishing...This has been the routine of my life. Get up in the morning, eat breakfast, practice, study, sleep and repeat. I got so used to it that sometimes I'm uncomfortable doing anything else besides academics and practice.

But I can't afford to do anything else and waste my time because I have a goal. And I'll achieve it no matter what.

Maya-maya pay ay natanaw ko na ang entrance ng Queenstein University. Nang makarating ako sa College of Music, agad akong naghanap ng practice room. It was 7:30 in the morning and I have my piano class at 9:30. Nang makahanap ako ng available practice room, pumasok agad ako roon at nagpipindot sa keys. Maayos naman ang tunog kaya hindi na ako naghanap pa ng iba.

Nilabas ko ang mga binabasa kong mga piyesa kanina saka nagsimula ng warm up. I liked sticking to basics for my foundation so I played Hanon no. 3 and 4 as a warm up for 4 repeats. After that, I started practicing my repertoire.

A year before I auditioned, I decided to take piano seriously and get a degree in music. Sa pamilya ko, ako lang ang musician. I didn't know why but when I was a kid, I saw a tarpaulin near a school and it had a piano on it. I didn't even know what a piano was but I said that I wanted to learn that. I haven't really stopped playing the piano since then.

After my classes today, I met up with my friends to do the group work. Napagkasunduan namin na magmeet sa Starbucks sa Qtown mall at doon pag-usapan ang report na gagawin. Laking pasasalamat ko nalang na mga kaibigan ko sa university ang nakagroup ko.

"Piano, Cello and Dance Works in the Baroque Era nalang 'yung title?" Naia asked.

Tumango naman si Zydney. "Pwede na yan! Oks na... So pwede na gumala!" Pinagdikit niya ang mga palad niya at nakangising tumingin sa amin ni Jam. Natawa naman kami saka tumango.