Due to a delayed grocery delivery, I found myself at Demeter's at 2 pm trying to serve and clean up after lobster bisque without running water. I only remembered when I went to fill the kitchen sink that there was a scheduled water turn-off for Demeter's building that afternoon.
As I was boiling pots of water to clean the dishes, and trying to wipe up sticky umbre soup drips without scalding my fingers, a waltz tune drifted into my addled brain, along with snippets of song.
I realised it was The Story of Celeste, something I hadn't heard since I was quite a little girl. It was written and performed by Paul Tripp with an orchestra, back in the days when there were quite a few of these kids' stories with symphonic orchestras making the rounds and being recorded. Tripp also wrote the rather better-known Tubby the Tuba, but as a little girl, I thought Celeste's waltz tune was just the most beautiful thing ever.
It's a Cinderella story, with Celeste, an orphaned tune looking for an owner, being locked up by the cruel Miss Squeak (a clarinet), who detests tinkly tunes. Celeste, of course, finally wins the heart of Prince Cello, and becomes his tune. So she can belong to him. And he can play her.
Okay, perhaps it's wiser not to look too deeply into this story, but the music is lovely.
Close to tears from fatigue, I left Demeter's and ran into her neighbour, who told me what a good daughter I was, and thumped me approvingly on my injured arm.
I didn't cry out, but staggered home to see if I could dig up the recording I remembered. YouTube didn't fail me. It's about fifteen minutes of your time, if you have it:
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