Can you make music with what you have left?

A classical guitarist is performing a difficult piece in front of a large audience. Suddenly there is a loud noise that reverberates throughout the auditorium. The audience immediately knows that a string has broken and fully expects the concert to be suspended until another string, or instrument, is brought to the musician.

But instead, the guitarist composes himself, closes his eyes and then signals the conductor to begin again. The orchestra resumes where they had left off and now the musician plays the music on five strings. In his mind he works out new fingering to compensate for the missing string. A work that few people can play well on six strings, the guitarist with the broken string plays on five.
When he finishes, an awesome silence hangs in the room. And then as one, the crowd rises to their feet and cheers wildly. The guitarist smiles and wipes perspiration from his brow. When silence returns to the great room, he explains why he continued to play in spite of a broken string. "You know," he says, still breathless, "sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left." I know what he means.

Maybe we've lived most of our lives and we have only a little time left, but the question remains-can we still make music?

-Maybe disease has robbed you of our capacity to work. Can you still make music?
-Maybe a financial loss has left you impoverished. Can you still make music?
-Maybe a meaningful relationship has ended and you feel alone in the world. Can you still make music?

There will come a time when we all experience loss. Like the guitarist, will we find the courage to discover just how much music we can still make with what we have left? How much good we can still do? How much joy we can still share? For I'm convinced that the world, more than ever, needs the music only you can make. And if it takes extra courage to make the music, many will applaud your effort. For some people have lost more than others, and these brave souls inspire the rest of us to greater heights.

Just how much music can you make with what you have left?