The bond we had was a component to fueling my drive to play piano.

When I used to play piano, my teacher was a musical mentor to me. Perhaps it was the relatively small age gap between her and I, that rendered a bond between teacher and student. I didn't expect to have such a friendly connection with her. After all, I thought she was supposed to be my piano teacher and nothing more. However, every time I would start my lesson with her, the first thing she would ask me was about things completely irrelevant to piano. She always asked topics that had to do with my everyday life. One lesson, I remember telling her about some tests I had for school in the following days. The next time I saw her, she asked about how I did on those tests. I was surprised, because I always found it impressive when someone remembered something you told them that you didn't expect them to remember. Casually talking to her about my everyday life made it seem like I was not only talking to my musical mentor, but to a friend. When I realized that she was more than just someone who taught me the ways of music, it motivated me to consistently practice my piano songs and drills. The bond we had was a component to fueling my drive to play piano. At the time, I did not only practice piano for the sake of pleasing my teacher, but it was in preparation for the next time I would have fun playing piano with a friend.

- Aira Laxina