Taylor, may his memory be eternal

Several years ago I was blessed to work with a talented teenager who loved to improvise and create at the piano. Taylor was spectacular! For about 3 years, Taylor would come to his lesson, sometimes have something to show me, sometimes I would give him a couple of themes to work with and develop. Off the top of his head, he would weave themes in and out, smiling, sometimes he'd get so tickled with himself he'd laugh out loud. He would play for 30 minutes straight, improvising and creating. We talked about chords and scales and how to get his fingers to play blues scales and funky riffs fast, but he had no interest in learning to read music. His mother, a gifted pianist herself, an amazing reader, tried to coax me into spending more time helping Taylor learn to read. Taylor didn't want to learn to read. Taylor found great joy in improvising and creating and he was brilliant! I learned so much from Taylor about so many things. When Taylor graduated from high school, he played in bands, played dinner music in coffee shops and clubs, learned to play the guitar, continued writing songs . . . He loved music! Several months ago, Taylor, at the age of 21 was killed in a tragic car accident. It was a terrible day for me. I cancelled all my classes. My heart ached for his family, all talented musicians, themselves, and wonderful people. These things just don't make sense. My first thought was, I was so glad that I had encouraged him to improvise and create - to be honest with who he was as a musician. The joy he brought to so many through his music; and the joy that music had brought to him in his short life. The LETTING GO of what I, or anyone else, thought a well-rounded musician should be, allowed him to be the brilliant musician God had created him to be! Taylor, may his memory be eternal.