The Violinist

by Marina Festugatto da Luz (Brazil)

I didn't expect to find Italy

It was the final days of a long trip trough Europe. That time when you start to worry about the endless hours on a plane, miss your family and long for that really good homemade food only your mother knows how to do. I was wandering around Rome with no specific destination in my mind. While I was crossing the Ponte Sant'Angelo, staring at that amazing castle, I started to hear the sound of a violin. I had no idea where it was coming from, what music was being played or who was playing it but I felt compelled to follow that mesmerizing soud alongside the margins of the Tiber River. There was a small crowd around him. The violinist was wearing woman's clothing, heels and lipstick. Above the open violin case, there was a sign that said: " When you have the freedom to be yourself you also give it to others." He was playing Hozier's Take me to Church with such peace and serenity that it spread to the audience, bringing a lot of people to tears. The sensation of watching that extremaly talented and original musician playing under the blue skies of Rome, with the Tiber River running behind you, the Castle Sant'Angelo to your right and the glorious Vatican only a glance away is not something that can be put into words. It's a feeling you get very few times in life. A realization of the beauty of life, a silent contemplation of the world around you. While I was standing there, hearing that amazing sound, everything was perfectly fine. I forgot about the long trip home, about missing my family, about all the problems in my life at that moment. It was such a powerful and intense feeling that I couln't help but cry. When I look back to my time in Europe, the memory of the violinist is surely the one that stands out the most. I don't know who that man is, but I will forever be grateful for the way he made me feel.