Mary Tooley

The Music Professor Based On The Professor By

CHARLOTTE BRONTE

IWISH TO CONVEY TO YOU THE LIFE OF A FORTIFIED MAN, my brother, who was orphaned at an early age. Our mother battled breast cancer for four years, finally concluding her life in slumber. From this experience, our father fell into deep depression, enclosing himself within his music room, avoiding nourishment and sleep, and playing classical music on the piano until he fainted from fatigue. Twelve months later, Dad ended his life by sprinting in front of an arriving train at Union Station in Toronto, leaving my brother and me (his younger sister Elizabeth), in the care of our mother’s two arrogant brothers, Robert Tynedale and John Seacombe. The two despised our honest, impoverished father, and quickly sent me to a boarding school for girls, and my brother to Upper Canada College.

This courageous man I am proud to call my brother is named William Crimsworth and is now a thirty-six-year-old gentleman. I have obtained and recalled the following information from him over coffee at a Second Cup in Toronto. My purpose in this memoir is to recount to you how William has proceeded with his life since university.

William always cherished music, similar to our late father, and graduated from the University of Toronto with a master’s in music. Since he refused to accept Uncle John Seacombe’s proposal of marrying his friend’s conceited daughter, Uncle decided to end his relationship with William by cutting off his income. William turned to me, a successful nurse, for guidance and assistance. I offered him an administrative position at the hospital where I worked in Ottawa. He gratefully accepted but was soon overwhelmed by the tedious work, and the belittling from his pretentious co-workers and the head doctor, John Hunsden, who declared false information about him.

As well, he found his salary was underwhelming and not worth the on-going abuse. Hunsden gave William little confidence in his mien. I suppose it was out of envy that he tormented my brother’s abilities by professing his faults openly and opposing his beliefs, opinions, and arguments. Hunsden’s vulgarity proved too daunting for William to endure, so he departed from the work, and ventured back to Toronto, hoping that he could erase Hunsden and his past regrets from memory.

In Toronto, William was unable to forget all that had occurred. One day he received an email from John Hunsden, saying there was a job opening as a music teacher at a neighboring school. He found it perplexing that such a cruel man as Hunsden could relay a message that could be so beneficial. William immediately applied and was interviewed. He used Hunsden as a reference (without his consent) and was accepted immediately, for Hunsden’s family was apparently very well respected.

The school principal, Emily Reuter, a woman seven years William’s senior, seemed to enjoy his company immensely, inviting him to dinners, taking him to the movies, and calling him frequently with her problems and concerns. In William’s spare time, he often socialized with university friends, emailed me, and marked tests.

At the end of the school year, tension began to build inside William as he realized that he had only a week left to finish grading and completing report cards. One warm night in early June, he decided to stay at the school and finish his work. As William began to pack his bag at the end of the night, he overheard two loud voices in the office across the hall. He quietly peered out of his door to find John Hunsden (who had recently acquired the position as a doctor at a nearby hospital) and Emily conversing about marriage. As Emily pleaded for time to ponder his proposal, Hunsden accused her of having an interest in William. She rudely denied any feeling of attraction by describing Will as unattractive, tedious, and generally speaking, intolerable. William felt true despair at that present moment, the feeling of being completely deflated and demoralized. But he stood firm, waited for them to depart, and left for home.

The next day, William mentioned nothing of the experience he had encountered the night before to any soul. Emily treated him with her usual civility, solicitude, and overbearing kindness. He declined all of her invitations to lunch and spoke with contempt and disdain in reaction to the hurtful betrayal. He uttered no compliments, refused to trot by her side, and used a harsh, strong, and honest vocabulary. She grew annoyed and bewildered at William’s expressions and countenance, and John continued to be cold and brassy. Over these weeks, William suffered from loneliness. His only consolation was the loving and supportive emails from me, and the friendly but depressed face of a fellow English teacher named Frances Evans Henri. Her appearance perplexed but entranced him. It was unusual, but had genuine warmth. When they passed through the halls, she shyly fixed her eyes upon the ground and sprinted ahead of William. He decided to attend one of her lectures. Her speech was smooth and intelligent, and she could recite poetry like no one he had ever heard. Honestly, William spoke of her earnest manner and intellect with enthusiasm and passion.

One day after her class, she seized William’s attention. She politely asked him if he would teach her to play the piano. He willingly accepted the opportunity. The instrument was completely out of tune, but Frances worked hard and diligently to renew its tone. She succeeded in all aspects of reading, rhythm, and dynamics. She was firm and unyielding, but always enjoyed their breaks that consisted of humorous, yet intense conversation. As Frances improved, she began to play recitals in front of the students, always receiving an enthusiastic applause and gaining immense respect. She and William had coffee often to discuss their lives, family, and interests. During their three years at the school together, they went skiing in Vermont and visited Frances’s family in Montreal. They united their social groups and had great gatherings. But all excitement and gallivanting ceased when Frances left suddenly to attend her failing aunt in Montreal. This illness turned to death within a matter of months. This loss of a bond seemed to transport Frances into seclusion, leaving her soul stranded and lost. William endeavored to console her with genuine sympathy, for he had faced this trauma as a child, but all attempts seemed hopeless. He also knew that this death was not all that had caused her to leave, and he began to suspect Emily Reuter’s unceasing kindness.

Months of contemplating brought William to a conclusion. He was motivated to alter Frances’s misery by forcing her to continue participating in activities. When the summer approached, he courageously ventured to her cottage, finding her desolate and pale. She somewhat begrudgingly returned with him to Toronto. To William’s delight, she soon grew less reluctant, and they attended parties, went to movies, and enjoyed one another’s company immensely. Over time, he began to find a sparkle in her eyes and a glow in her cheeks. Eventually, he inquired about her relationship with her aunt. As she released the stress and tension she so intensely felt about her dear aunt’s passing, she mentioned the beguiling Emily, and how Frances was asked to leave her position as teacher because Emily no longer required her services. This act of jealous falsehood infuriated my brother, and consequently me, since I always had my brother’s welfare foremost in my mind.

Two summers later, Frances and William were married and purchased a small home in Toronto and a lovely antique piano they placed in the foyer. William obtained the position as a professor of music at the University of Toronto, and Frances as a truly admired English professor and piano teacher. They lived contentedly, while I became a nurse in Toronto and married. Emily resentfully wedded John.

To this day, Frances and William continue to grow closer. They appreciate and cherish every fault and exceptional quality in one another. They fully embrace all of their days, provide support and guidance to each other, forsake regrets, and preserve precious memories. They live happily amongst their music, family, friends, and wonderful children.