Nicolo Paganini was one of the greatest violinists of the nineteenth century. His most memorable concert was in Italy, performing before a packed house, when suddenly one string on his violin snapped. He never missed a beat but continued to play until, to everyone’s surprise, a second string broke, and shortly after, a third. Paganini stood there with three strings dangling from his Stradivarius. But instead of leaving the stage, he held up his violin and simply said: ‘One string – and Paganini.’ Then he continued to play, improvising almost unbelievably on the one remaining string.
That story is another illustration of an old and venerable theme – that our lives are often like broken violins; but in the Master’s hand they can still play heavenly music.