This week a third grade student at our neighborhood school died from longterm illness. While many in our community knew of this child’s condition, the news left the kids stunned and sad.

I had three alerts to what happened – two expected (a principal’s phone call and my son’s report of their classroom discussion with teachers), and one surprise communication from my student Isra later that afternoon. As Isra walked into my living room for her lesson, she held two pieces of paper in her hand. They were covered in words she’d written that day in honor of her classmate. Immediately, I knew we would not be opening her regular piano books that day.

Isra strode to the bench with her characteristic sachet, not making eye contact but rather looking directly at the keys. She sat down, unfolded the papers carefully, and stood them side by side. Her actions revealed two verses and a chorus in two different ink colors which together declared: “You were the queen of the ball…” and, “So be free to be, to be, to be…me.”

We spent our half hour together writing down the music, with me choking back tears of pride. Isra patiently sang the song phrase by phrase, and I scribbled a basic line to reflect what I was hearing. She knew when the notes should go up more than I’d captured, and she had an idea of deepening one of the base chords to better support the melodic line. We agreed that I’d made a mistake in repeating “to be” one less time than was meant to be. We’d fix and finish it the following week.

As Isra left her lesson, I found I was a bit stunned myself. Music was allowing this young student to process her loss, life’s vulnerability, and the beauty of the person she knew. She was clearly mystified and still in some quiet shock. And being nine years old, my guess is she might have gone home and still asked for ice cream or screen time after dinner like any other kid on a regular day.  But she and I were both changed by her initiative, and I incredibly grateful for it.

The last line of her chorus has especially stayed with me. While the song was dedicated to her classmate, its words concluded “So be free to be…me.” So perhaps her song was unwittingly or even knowingly charging herself, and all whom she loves, to live more fully in light of what had just happened.

I’ve spent the last few days at the keys far more, as a result.