The Golden Arche

Osuna 1

Anna Osuna

PAS 114B

February 22, 2012

Narrative Essay

The Golden Arche

He walked with elegance, a stride that would capture the eyes of any women that crossed his path. Sleek boned with the eyes of a panther, strong but outrageous, you would of never guessed his life style. School was never been his strongest point, he had a hard time focusing on single topics so school was not a fit for him, although he may not be the brightest, he had persistence combined with the motivation to succeed, but he did not live for school. His parent’s richer then rich paying for every penny of the enormous tuition needing to be paid to even stay in USC. His destiny was music, the world of the blues is what he lived for, and his sidekick the saxophone. Many people would look at him and squint their noses and ask again

“Well that is a nice hobby but what is your real major?” and once again he would reply music. However, now a day most folks say you either get it all or you get nothing, or some claim it is just pure luck to make it to the top, some even chose to neglect their passion and just address that part of their lives as a dream but Jeremy, Jeremy is all about persistence or so he claims but is persistence what pulls him through day after day of struggles? No it is the character of the individual who is able to break through the waters surface each and every morning. You see Jeremy Alvarado will never take no for an answer, because the golden arch, the saxophone strapped around his back is what plays his life’s stories, it is his best companion, his soul mate, his worst enemy, and his passion all wrapped up in not the object itself but the music that gracefully streams out of the mouth of the instrument.

Jeremy is captivated by the blues a genre not greatly appreciated by kids now a days Not that that Jeremy is a kid he would be 23 to be exact and should have been graduating from college this year along with his class. .  You may be wondering my relation to Jeremy  ,and what purpose he serves to me. So let me introduce myself my name is Professor Benit Grey a jazz musician, who attended the school of music at NYU. I am currently teaching woodwinds in Los Angeles at the University of California. What sets Jeremy aside from the other 2,000 kids in his class was I witnessed his murder and murdered for a reason you have no control over. Jeremy was gay constantly struggling to be accepted by his peers and his parents. He believed going to school would fulfill the resentment they choose to keep against him for a choice that was not his. Jeremy was a quite kid and never gave up on his dreams, until they were taken from him. Why I was chosen to hold such a burden I ask myself this question everyday but it is an image that will continue to haunt me for the rest of my life.

The day it happened was a casual Tuesday. The first Tuesday of the month of January in the year of 2010 the semester had just recently begun it was a beautiful cold gloomy day, the days I loved the most out of the year because it gave me such comfort. The clock struck twelve and my theory class 200 rushed out of class as if they had been prisoners there for months on end. I remember noticing Jeremy because unlike every other student he seemed in no rush to leave my classroom, he treated that chair as if it was s luxury to be sitting in it, and he was going to absorb every last minute in it.

“Well Hello Jeremy how was your winter break?” I asked, he looked at me and replied

 “ It was good, I just turned 21 last Thursday so I am pretty excited, that I finally can go out and get drunk whenever I want” he laughed, “I am just kidding but I did go to Vegas with my boyfriend and a couple of my really good friends, it was super fun” he smiled

“That sounds fun, how is your music coming along? Any questions or anything I could help you with?” I asked waiting for his response, he took a couple of minutes to decide whether he wanted to answer that question, he squinted his eyebrows together as if he was thinking really hard into something.

“Yes “, he answered with regret in voice

 “ And what is it I can help you with sir?” asking as I scrambled through my brief case,

“ Well I have been writing this song and I feel as if it needs a good opinion and I really do feel as if yours would come of great use to me, so I was wondering if I could play you what I have, I even brought you a copy of the sheet music I have been writing out.”, he said handing me the piece.

 I looked up at him “ I would be honored son, you can begin whenever you are ready I will be at my desk.”

I walked slowly back to my brown desk that sat in the center of the triangular shaped room and began to start grading papers. I tried not to look at him as I waited because I know that would make him nervous but he did not seem to care. He brushed off his case and un-did the hatches one by one flinging them both open, he pulled out his golden sax he got out his mouth piece and gently grazed it with the cloth to make sure it was half ways clean, then he got out a brand new reed and placed it perfectly on the mouth piece, after he grabbed his cork grease and slide the mouth piece right over the top of the sax. He blew on it gently to make sure it was the right pitch grabbed a music stand and placed the sheet music he had brought for himself against the long neck of the stand.

“I am ready Professor Grey”  he said.

I guess I had not heard him the first time he said this but this did not stop him he began to play, what he began to play I have to admit it did not catch my attention at first it was a bit dry and common, more of a simple. Until it took a shift in mood he began to play this slow sultry mood of a piece, the piece came alive off the paper I could feel it moving through my spin, stimulating my mind but it was not the notes that moved me because music is not robotic. It was the Jeremy, who really began to shine, his figures moved in such poise no one would of guessed that this boy would be responsible for the cries that left the mouth of his saxophone. To Jeremy this song was the breathing image of his life. The saxophone played as the narrator of his music, his life, and his soul. This is what set Jeremy apart from the rest that he played with a purpose and that is what many musicians lack and can never gain because some people do not hold the heart to do that. Jeremy suddenly stopped,

” Is there anything wrong Jeremy?” I asked,.

“ Oh no this is just all I have written, so far and I am not even sure if I like it I feel the melody is too all over the place and that then it doesn’t capture the true meaning that is supposed to be purveyed through the song” he replied.

 “ Do you know that you have yourself a masterpiece right there, no song will come out perfect for the first time, but seeing someone being able to play with such passion is astonishing. Yes the piece could be worked on but do not ever doubt yourself!” he looked at me surprised but still doubted “ Are you sure I just played this to my roommate the other day and he told me it was shit?”

“ Really“ I replied, “I would not waste my time giving you a good opinion if I did not think it you were worthy of it stop doubting yourself no one is here to judge you.  Like I said your passion for this instrument is what will lead you to success, have confidence in yourself!” 

He looked up and smiled at me as if he had never heard such good feedback in his life, I was sure he had but for some reason. I swore he had but it puzzled me how could a talent such as him go unnoticed for so long. I did not care I was determined to help him because I knew he had the potential

“Why Don’t you play that In a different key for me lets say A minor since it is in c minor right now?” I asked, he started at me for a minute but did as I asked.

He held the reed to his lips closed his eyes, and gently blew in the saxophone a light A then E then a B flat all the notes gracefully falling into the air one after another creating the sound of the same song but a even richer blue sounds.  . He continued to play and I just sit and admired and then once he was finished he stopped and had the biggest smile on his face.

“ I loved the sound of that Professor but I believe I wrote it the original way for a certain purpose” he said,” You see the title on that page?”

“Yes I do” I replied as I read

“It is called breaking for a reason I do not want it to sound smooth because this song tells the engravings of my heart.” I looked back at him with a smirk on my face I had not expected this from him but I accepted it. I cannot argue with what he wants to do with his music because he is the artist and I am just the observer, here for suggestion

“ However you like it is fine with me I was just giving you suggestions, ways to play with it so you could see if you liked it another way ” I replied.

” Well thank you sir!” he smiled finally with some confidence “ well I need to get going now Professor I have another class actually.”

He got up stumbling around trying to place his saxophone as quickly as possible back into the case he grabbed his music shoved it in his case and closed the latches right, making sure nothing would get loose. I stopped him before he could run down the stairs out the door.

” Don’t let anyone along with that roommate of yours tell you that you can not play, because your talented you hear me, don’t let people get you down one thing I had to remember is that you will have your fans but you will have those people who like to comment on your music and that is okay. If every one liked it what would make it worth it!”

He looked at me as if he was still making sense in his head of what to think. He nodded his head said thank you and rushed out the door. I walked over back to my desk laid my head in my hands and began to doze off. The class that I had just taught was my last class and thank god my day is over! I sat at my desk pondering, I had never knew Jeremy had so much potential he was always just another kid in my class who I thought was not probably 100 percent sure if music was what he wanted to do for a living.  After he played that piece he walked out of here with a stride of confidence. Falling asleep at my desk I woke up around 10 at night, the janitor tapped me telling me that it was time for me to go home. I woke up slowly and gathered the papers had been grading and headed on out the long doors of the music hall. Finally getting outside the air that hit my face was cold, man I had forgotten my jacket but I guess I would have to wait until tomorrow to get it back. I kept walking hoping to catch the Starbucks still open so I could get an Americano to warm this blood of mine up. Lucky for me it did not close till 11. I went up to the register placed my order and sat down. I began to grade a paper as I waited for my drink

“Benit? Americano for Benit ” the young girl called.

 I rose up grabbed my drink gave her a couple dollars for tips and walked out the door.  Once I hit outside it was cold all over my body again but I guess I had to manage, so to get to my car faster I walked through the dorms. The hallways were long and gloomy many students were already asleep giving it was 10:30, however the dorms have always had a creepy feeling to them even a grown man like me would be scared of walking through them so late. As I was walking almost to my car I noticed a Saxophone case on the floor. I picked it up open the latches trying to figure out who’s it was and then I came across the sheet music Jeremy had given to me a few hours earlier. I closed the case and picked it up gently puzzled because why would Jeremy leave his instrument out here, something seemed wrong but I just thought to myself I am just going to hold on to it until I see him Thursday for his next class. As I continued to walk to my car I noticed the large rolling trash bin was completely knocked over, leaving trash scattered everywhere around the parking lot.

“ Kids these days I thought they can’t even take care and keep the school they were paying thousands and thousands of dollars “ I whispered to myself.

I collected the majority of the trash and went to stand the trash can back up and suddenly what appeared to be a hand flung out of the trashcan.

“Oh my god,” I yelled terrified I dropped the trashcan and began to walk away back to my car I turned back around ad began walking to the trashcan again. Once again I saw the hand appear.

“No this is not the hand of a human it has to be fake,” I said.

So I pulled the hand a little harder and sure enough it was still slightly warm. I felt tears begin to come to my eyes I kept pulling on the hand and soon pooped out the face of Jeremy beaten so bad you wouldn’t of recognized him except for the cloths that he was wearing on his back. He had bruises all over his arms but what really disturbed me is that he

had the word“fagget” in big black lettering written on his forehead. Could people have really killed this young man over him being gay? I was in shock left speechless I couldn’t even think, I felt as if I had no idea what to do or say, but I picked up my phone and dialed 911 as my first instinct and everything became a blur after that. I remember the campus police rushing as fast as they could to the scene; I sat there and watched them investigate the area and bag up Jeremy. I sat in my car until the ambulance drove off, just sitting there playing over and over again what could of happened during his last moments. It was obvious to all of us what happened that day, this boy was beaten to death because he was gay but was gay his choice or was it an identity he was born with? Even if he chose to be gay why should any one be given the right to have token his life, he was such a beautiful person but only if you would of took the time to know him you would of realized it. How could a person with such talent and grace not be given the chance to live his dream? How could someone decide to cut his life short? But I guess I will never know because the men who have been accused of this crime still have not been found guilty because lack of evidence but to me it does not matter who committed the crime but that we learn from it. I swear, I can still remember that night if it was yesterday the same thoughts still run through my head but I have finally given up looking for the answers because nothing I do can change what I has happened. The death of Jeremy had impacted many other besides myself, but I believe I got the ultimate gift that day; he shared his music with me, a big part of his life and I have the honor to be able to complete the composition hopefully the way he dreamt it. Although Jeremy did die, he will forever live in the music he wrote and the memories in my head, maybe it was not a coincidence that he played and gave me a copy of his song this day maybe it was fate, and I was given the task to carry on his passion along with mine.