3.4 ARJ could imagine the individual notes escaping up the chimney...

Payne Township, Sedgwick County, Kansas -  February 1874

That evening, for the first time since the terrible night of the mob, Dad walked to the far corner of the room and retrieved the big case that held his euphonium. He set it on the bed and flipped the latch. Pulling out the instrument, he adjusted the slides, tucked it under his arm and headed for a chair near the fireplace.

ARJ sat petting Buddy and watched Dad, from his spot on the floor, as he took a couple of slow, deep
breathes and then lifted the horn to play. The first notes coming from the euphonium soothed ARJ’s nerves almost immediately. He felt the muscles in his back and neck relax.

Dad’s music melted the memory of the mob away. The crowd whose anger was incited by the angry man he’d seen in town, and the untrustworthy neighbor on the next farm, that had threatened their safety and made the world seem more frightening than before.

As he listened to Dad play, ARJ could almost believe that everything would be alright after all.

The deep, mellow tones resonated around the cabin, and into each heart in the room, with a wondrous sound. ARJ could imagine the individual notes escaping up the chimney, heading into the velvet blue of the night toward the stars high above.

As Mum lay the baby in her crate bed, she began to softly sing the hymn as Dad played.

“Abide with me! Fast falls the eventide;

The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide!

When other helpers fail and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.”

ARJ joined in, trying to replicate the beautiful harmony he loved to listen to in church. Some of the words were hard for him to understand, but he knew what they meant, anyway.

“I need Thy presence every passing hour:

What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?

Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?

Through cloud and sunshine, oh, abide with me.”

By the time the song was done, John William and Eva Anna were fast asleep. ARJ went to sit near Dad, feeling the warmth of the fire at his back.

“Keep playing, Dad.”

His father lifted the instrument and 'Blessed Assurance' flowed from the bell of the euphonium.

At the last note, ARJ touched his dad’s elbow.

“One more song and then it’s time for bed.” Dad told him. 

The melody he played next was one he knew his father had learned when he was younger. Dad called it a waltz and ARJ counted ‘ONE, two, three, ONE, two, three’ in his head along with the tune.

As he listened to the music, he thought about the story Dad told him as their covered wagon rocked along the bumpy trail, on their way to Kansas.

He recalled starting the conversation himself and he closed his eyes and remembered that day.

ARJ had crawled out onto the wagon bench next to his father.

“Dad, do you remember when you told us to think carefully about what to bring to America because we didn’t have much room? Why did you decide to bring the euphonium? It’s so big and it takes up half of the wagon!” ARJ asked as he watched the horses follow the trail ahead.

Dad laughed. “What did YOU bring with you, son?”

“I brought the little wooden sailing boat that Grandpa William carved me.” ARJ answered. “…so I’ll never forget about him or the island.”

Dad nodded.

“I brought my horn for the same reason.”

Dad handed ARJ the reins, letting him feel the power of the horses in his hands, as he continued his story.

“I was fourteen when I saw that second-hand horn in a shop window back in Ryde. From the minute I saw it, I knew I had to have it.”

Dad gestured for ARJ to keep his eye on the horses. “At the time, I had just started working as a carter in the harbor, and every day I’d pause at that window to admire it."

“Did the euphonium cost a lot?” ARJ asked.

“For me it was a lot.” Dad nodded.

“One Sunday afternoon, I was walking the Promenade along the sea, with my parents and brothers and sisters. As we walked by the shop, I paused, as was my habit, and stared at the euphonium. My dad, your Grandpa William, stopped alongside me.”

“And he bought it for you?” The wagon suddenly tilted on the uneven ground and ARJ quickly handed the reins back to Dad.

“Not right away. He did ask me about it, though. I told him how much I wanted a musical instrument. Grandpa William enjoyed music.

He told me, ‘Son, keep working hard and someday you can buy whatever instrument you wish.”

“So, you bought it?”

Dad shook his head. “One day, I came home from working in the harbor, and there was the euphonium case sitting on the front porch. I was so surprised!"

"So, it reminds you of home."

"It does do that. And it reminds me of my dad. I imagine he just wanted me to be happy. I think most dads know how to give their children good gifts. I’ll always remember that unexpected kindness.”

Now, back in the cabin, Dad finished the waltz and ARJ suddenly felt sleepy. He stood and hugged his dad, then Buddy, and moved toward the palette. In seconds, he was asleep; lulled into his dreams by a few extra notes Dad played before putting the euphonium away for the night.