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‘Genius in a Bottle’ Prompted Writing Challenge
From Mazhar to Bizarre
GiaB writing prompt #2–24
A journey of hope
ended up showing me how
hopeless I could be
When I moved back to the UK to read for my first postgraduate degree, I met a much younger cousin, with whom I was, and still am, enamoured.
When he finished high school, I decided to surprise him with a treat for the years of intense academic preparation he had undertaken. An actuary today, his efforts were beyond significant. It had weathered him however, and I wanted to take him with me as we traveled all across Italy, for his first international trip without his parents.
I had just submitted my thesis and I planned to visit Germany briefly. I was a performing percussionist and had fallen in love with the Persian frame drums, the oldest style of drum in our collective history. Essentially, they are a wooden ring or hoop with a hide stretched over one side. In the hands of artisanal craftsmen, this melange of wood and animal hides results in an instrument and music quite unlike anything else.
In Berlin, there is such a frame drum craftsman who makes innovative instruments, under the business name, David Roman Drums. I wanted to pick up a few…
