Canciones: Padres y hijas

On June 17, El Salvador celebrated Father’s Day. The center and schools were closed so families could spend time celebrating together. It felt like an eternity since I had been able to see some of my students, since the week before I had to leave unexpectedly to Costa Rica to renew my immigration visa.

One of my students the following week came for her piano lesson and we talked about songs she could potentially learn to play for the concert. She named a few and as I wrote them down my attention was grabbed by one Princesas Magicas by Jesus Adrian Romero. Later when I listened to it, I realized that it was a love letter from a father to his daughters and I thought about how my student shared she spent Father’s Day. She shared how thankfully she was able to Skype and letter to her dad, because he lives in Houston, TX.

Then I began to contemplate about the book I have been reading Las Hijas de Juan: Daughters Betrayed by Josie Mendez-Negrete. This book is an autobiography about Josie and focuses on her relationship to her father. He was physically, sexually, and psychologically abusive to her mother, sisters, and herself. I was reminded of one of her reflections about how one of her sister’s would cope with the sexual abuse of her father. She would think of specific songs trying to escape from the devastating reality of what her father was doing to her. Her sister longed for the words of her songs to be more real than the nightmare she found herself in.

The words of this song deepened my appreciation for all the ways my father has been there for me in my life. How much he has loved me and continued to be present. I realized more profoundly how blessed I am to have a father like him. At the same time my heart broke for my student, because I knew she did not have this same dynamic in her life and neither did Josie or her family. And so I kept wondering why my student was so interested in learning this song. Perhaps it is because she wishes that the words of a father expressing such a close and loving relationship were a part of her every reality, or learn it to console herself when she is missing him.

Music has the power to move our hearts and in my time here at Centro Arte para la Paz I have found the greater sacredness of how it moves through us and is shared. It is more than words, it is more than melodies. The gift of music allows for a special kind of solidarity to exist. I hope that with this song my student can feel closer to her father even though thousands of miles and many other complex barriers separate them, Josie and women and children like her can continue to heal and find reconciliation, and for all those who are so blessed to have a good father in their life that they will grow more in their relationship. 

To hear the song click the following link: Princesas Magicas

With my Dad at Lago Suchitlan 

With my Dad at the Monsenor Romero Vigil