Franz Liszt was born on this day in 1811, in a small village in Hungary called Raiding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His father played the cello and taught him the piano. The boy took to it fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By six, people knew he was special. By eight, he was writing music. By nine, he was playing in concerts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Vienna, the famous composer Antonio Salieri offered to teach him for free. Liszt was a wonder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he turned twelve and tried to join the music school in Paris. They said no.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The reason? He was a foreigner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about that for a moment. A boy who could play like that, turned away at the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here is what I love. He did not turn bitter. He did not hoard what he had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When the Danube flooded Pest in 1837, he gave a very large gift to help the families. When the Great Fire of Hamburg left thousands homeless in 1842, he played concerts to raise money for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 1847, he gave his last paid concert. After that, he settled down to write music and to teach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the German town of Weimar, young pianists came to him from all over. He gave them his time, his guidance, and his encouragement. He did not charge them for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Later in life, his faith grew quieter and deeper. He became a Franciscan tertiary. That means a lay person who tries to live by the simple way of St. Francis, right out in ordinary life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 1865, he received minor orders in the Catholic Church. After that, people called him the Abb\u00e9 Liszt. He was never ordained a priest, but the title stuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It all sounds a lot like a line from the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus tells his friends:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“You received without paying, give without pay.” (Matthew 10:8, RSV-2CE)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Liszt could have kept his gift locked up and charged a fortune for every drop of it. Plenty of people would have understood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Instead, he handed it on. Student by student. Concert by concert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So here is a small question for your Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What were you handed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maybe it is a recipe from your grandmother. Maybe it is a good ear for listening. A steady hand with a needle. A way with a nervous child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You probably did not earn it all by yourself. Someone showed you. Someone was patient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who could you show today?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It does not have to be a concert hall. It can be a kitchen table. Ten quiet minutes. A “here, let me show you.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is how gifts stay alive. They get given away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On the birthday of composer Franz Liszt, a boy who was turned away at twelve and grew up to give his gift away, free, to anyone who needed it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132804860,"featured_media":17751,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[90847,785751986,78566],"tags":[789,785750968,974429,785751011,785751023],"class_list":["post-17756","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art-creativity","category-daily-reflections","category-life-reflections","tag-creativity","tag-history","tag-liszt","tag-reflection","tag-wisdom"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9vUsN-4Co","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7213,"url":"https:\/\/my-all-about-you.com\/en\/2025\/05\/22\/a-prayer-for-gods-blessings-on-families-nations-and-the-world-day-168-hungary\/","url_meta":{"origin":17756,"position":0},"title":"A Prayer for God\u2019s Blessings on Families, Nations, and the World, Day 168, Hungary","author":"myallaboutyou","date":"May 22, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"This heartfelt prayer expresses gratitude and hope while seeking divine guidance and protection for loved ones, the nation of Haiti, and all facing struggles. 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