Handprints on the Glass

A Hauntingly Beautiful Solo

Mark picked his violin up off of his lap as his grandmother pulled into the parking space in the school lot.  His grandmother gave him a kiss and told him good luck. Carey gave him a hug and a smile and Mr Olan gave him a heartfelt "Love, Peace, and Freedom!" Marky went off to the choir room to meet up with the rest of the orchestra while his group of fans went to find their seats. When the curtain opened ten minutes later Mark saw Mr. Olan sitting next to his grandmother then Carey and her mom next to her. On the end of the row were two empty seats. One was for his Christa and one was for his mother. The lights were dimmed and the music started.The kids played their hearts out on stage . They had all been practicing these songs and now proudly played them for their families and friends. Mark however, tried his best to keep up while still trying to see out into the audience checking if his mother had arrived. Between songs the lights were raised and Mark saw Christa in her seat. The seat next to her remained empty. Only two more songs until the big solo and Mark just wanted to get down off of the stage and leave. He had been sure his momma would finally see his solo. He had learned it better than he had ever learned any song before it.  As the song with his solo approached Marky could feel his eyes starting to burn with tears. He looked out on the crowd again and could make out Mr. Olan with a proud look on his face and Carey smiling bright. His grandmother clapping her hands in anticipation of his solo. Christa looking right at him and then pointing to the back of the room. Mark looked and saw his mother standing in the back watching the concert. She had made it after all. She was just unable to compose herself enough after cleaning the handprints to feel comfortable sitting amongst the crowd.  The big song started and Mark now started crying tears of joy. He was so happy his mother was finally watching, was finally healing. He looked at his sheet music and realized he could no longer read it as his eyes were too blurry. Before he knew it the conductor was pointing at him to start his solo. All the other kids stopped playing and all eyes were on Mark.The room was silent for a second or two and then Mark started to play. He still couldn't see the notes but it no longer mattered. He felt as if he had lost control of his arms. The bow was dragging across the strings and his fingers were pressing the notes but he was just letting go and letting it happen. He played a solo like no other boy his age had ever played. He made art with his bow, he pulled achingly beautiful sounds across the strings. Joanna felt tears streaming down her face and would have felt embarrassed but as she looked around the room she noticed that everyone was in a similar state. There was not a dry eye in the house. This solo was so hauntingly beautiful that it felt as if the music was passing right through you. Like the notes were wrapping around your heart and embedding themselves in your soul. Not a single person in the room had ever heard anything so beautiful. As the solo came to an end the crowd rose to its feet and gave the boy a standing ovation. As Mark stood and took a bow he felt himself regaining the use of his arms and he blew a kiss at his momma.  As the lights went dim once more the entire crowd noticed  the light that was shining on stage near Mark. The light then slowly rose up off of the stage and dissapeared through the ceiling. Mark ran to his mother and screamed.....We did it momma! We did it! We let Justin go momma! He can be an angel now!

Mark looked up at the ceiling and shouted......Good bye Justin!

Joanna knelt down and hugged Mark . then they both looked up at the ceiling and Joanna whispered.

            Good bye Justin baby. We wll never forget you.