I am grateful to God for all the blessings my family and I have known through the study and practice of Christian Science.

I am particularly grateful for the solving of a business problem. During a recent two-year period it became increasingly obvious to me, as a piano teacher and working pianist, that I needed a new piano. Because I had just purchased a needed car, my personal finances were almost depleted. A new piano would cost a minimum of about £1,500 [approximately $3,300 at that time]. I had prayed about the situation intermittently and was always mindful that as God's reflection, I couldn't lack anything I needed.

In September of last year I started a new school term, still no nearer to acquiring a new piano than I had been before. The subject of that week's Bible Lesson (outlined in the Christian Science Quarterly) was "Substance." After I had read the lesson, the thought came to me that if an individual wishes to progress in a business venture, he has to continually invest in it. So I decided that I would invest something in my business, by better expressing the spiritual substance of God-derived qualities.

I was reminded of a previous ballet class I had been accompanying during which I had heard the teacher remark to a student, "You must do your best all of the time." I realized that I had not been doing my best much of the time. Frequently I allowed my concentration to lapse during ballet practice periods. As music is expressed through movement in ballet, I resolved to interpret the music more accurately, thereby making it more expressive and, in turn, giving more help and support to the children. I also intended to arrive at classes earlier so that the ballet teacher and I could discuss the music beforehand, instead of talking in front of the students during class.

There was an opportunity for investing—expressing—more spiritual substance in stage and tap dancing classes, too. For two years I had been using the same one hundred tunes (which I played by ear). I saw that some freshness and variety were needed in those classes, so I set about compiling and learning another one hundred. How could the ballet teacher and I expect the children to be inventive and imaginative, or improve their responsiveness to the music, if I kept playing the same tunes?

As for my own pupils, I saw I could be more patient and tolerant with them. I had to remember that I was trying to cultivate the students' love and understanding of music, not just get them through examinations. I also realized that my own piano playing had been neglected for some time and therefore that as a pianist I had improved little over the years. So I decided to set aside more time each week for my own personal practice.

During the several days I was so busy thinking of ways to express more spiritual substance in my work and to put God's qualities into practice, I totally forgot about buying a piano! One evening I opened the paper, and an advertisement offering a second-hand piano for £445 caught my eye. I liked the description of it, so the next day I went to view it. The piano I saw was ideal for my purposes and was almost as good as a new piano. My husband donated £300 of his own money toward the cost; the remainder I was able to pay from teaching income I'd saved.

To me this was yet another demonstration of the great truth expressed by Mrs. Eddy in Science and Health (p. 494): "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need." I am learning to trust in God for everything.

PAULINE D. JENNER
Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England