Rite of Passage

At last it had come, the parcel Tamarin had been waiting so long for. She unwrapped it gently, revealing a small black case. Tamarin carefully opened it, gasping with delight as she saw how beautiful the shining silver flute was.

Tamarin's first flute had been a small bamboo one especially made by her uncle. But that had been a long time ago when she was still living in a small village which lay by the Mae Ping river in northern Thailand. Now she has grown up, living in London and studying at the Royal College of Music.

Slowly taking out the three sections of the flute, Tamarin carefully fitted them together. Then she brought the flute up to touch her forehead to show respect, just as she'd been taught by her uncle. As she did so an image of her uncle came to her as if in a dream. At this moment Tamarin knew that somewhere he was still watching over her, smiling with pride for his clever niece.