The Worth of an Instrument
I suppose that a lot of people who know me would describe me as a rational person. Some who are mere acquaintances might even perceive me as relatively unemotional. I value thinking carefully and deeply about life and situations. Whether by nature, by practice, or by both, I tend to be highly analytical and this means that I also surely err on the side of calculation and caution. I’m sure it’s been maddening to more than one person or significant other. Lately, though, I have been watching some epic and dramatic films – specifically the Harry Potter movies. In them, at key moments, the soundtrack rises, often with the distinct sound of French horns soaring with the building tension and into resolution. And as I have allowed myself to be absorbed in these sequences, I have consistently been moved nearly to tears. In one sense it is the music and the connected film that does this. But it is also something more. I spent the years of my adolescence learning to play French horn and p...