The Legacy Lives On

   The Piano Lesson by August Wilson is a play that explores the significance and importance of family heirlooms. The main point of conflict in the Piano Lesson is a piano. The piano has been in the family for years and has an extensive history with the main characters. Problems arise when a character in the book, Boy Willie, wants to sell the piano to buy some land. His sister, Berneice, staunchly refuses. She realizes the significance of the piano and doesn't want to part with it. Just like Berneice and Boy Willie, many families have family heirlooms. Heirlooms are important in that they carry on a legacy that is not easily broken. People die and stories change, but heirlooms are concrete.
   Before my great grandmother died, she passed on a pearl necklace that she used to wear all the time. She was known around my hometown as a very classy lady, and everyone knew who she was. Before I left for college, my mother passed the necklace on to me, and although I've never met my great grandmother, I have a connection to her. Her classy legacy lives on through the things she left behind--in my case her pearls. Many families have heirlooms, and each one is important for different reasons. They are apart of many families' legacies and histories, and they should not be carelessly sold or destroyed.