Published: January 16, 2008 10:47 pm      

Tim Preston: Good teachers change lives forever

I spent only a few minutes with Scott “Piano Man” Brown a couple of days before Christmas, and at the time never imagined I would learn so much from such a brief encounter.

Scott passed away this week. I think everyone who knew him held out some desperate hope he would once again pull through, even though we knew he was, again, facing the inevitable. He was 22 years old.

If you missed his story, Scott faced serious medical problems that first appeared when he was 10 years old. He overcame his early challenges, which included extensive brain surgery to try and remove the massive tumor that had grown in his brain, studied martial arts, played piano and eventually became a college student. If you knew him, you’re well aware that description leaves a lot out.

I got the call from his former stepfather, Mark Breeding, who left a message Tuesday morning saying, “Piano Man has left us. He’s in heaven.”

Hearing that, I immediately remembered something Scott said during our only interview, “There’s only one thing you leave the Earth with and that’s the love you’ve collected between friends and family. Love is eternal.”

I went back to the original story to check those words and was surprised to see them in that exact order. He said a few other things that day which I also carry with me. I suspect those words remain in the memories of anyone who read about Scott.

Scott was not having a good day when we met and had what would be our only conversation. Despite that, he focused on me and made his thoughts clear and deliberate. I walked out of there thinking I could never be as tough as this kid, or face the end of life with such clear and evident faith.

I had dropped by the Hospice center to see Scott a few hours before he left us. While there I met his good friend Donna Bailey, one of many who knew Scott as a person as well as a pianist at Highlawn Full Gospel Assembly, where his funeral will be conducted.

I talked to Donna after Scott’s death and she told me something that, surprisingly, made me feel a little better — Scott did get to play piano one last time before things got so bad. I’m not sure if anyone in his family was around to hear him play, or if he was even able to play well enough to amuse himself, but I liked the idea of him laying his fingers on those keys. When he talked about playing piano, there was an absolute inner light from this guy.

“Scott, through everything he has been through — he kept his faith in God to the end. He truly did. He made us strong through that,” Donna said. “He stayed so close to God. The last six months when he was laying in bed, he trusted in God so much I was amazed by it.”

I asked her to try and explain what it was about the Piano Man that set him apart. Her answer was nearly perfect. She said Scott conveyed the message “Cherish every moment you’ve got.”

Scott wasn’t awake the last time I saw him. Still, I wanted to say something, anything, to let him know he had touched my life. Words failed, and I found myself giving him a salute each of us learned from different teachers. I bowed slightly as a student would do to acknowledge his Sensei.

I’ll do my best to never forget what he taught.

TIM PRESTON can be reached at tpreston@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2651.