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| Oh, dear Ljova! There will not be life on Mars in your lifetime. Go home, dear heart, and study your banjo with a vengeance, for it is this which has been given you, and it is this Earth where you have been placed to strum away. And Miss Roma has received another message for you, Ljova dear. Please take this with an open mind, for some young men such as yourself might scoff. My familiars, Remus and Romulus, have brought a message to you from the Muse of all Muses. This is a great honor, Ljova, and Miss Roma asks you to promise to obey the command. Will you do that, Ljova? Will you raise your left foot right now and swear "I, Ljova, promise to obey the Muse's word as brought forth by Miss Roma?" That's a good boy. And here is your word from the Great Muse: "Ljova, you are to take up the viola. And the harmonica." Now, dear Ljova, you must do this, and I predict that, though you may not like this command right now, you will soon find yourself joying in the new music you will make, Music that will closely echo the Music of the Spheres that guided you here today. Miss Roma's blessings be on you. |