An elderly woman from central Vietnam signed up for piano courses at the age of 80 to fulfill a desire she has had since she was young: being able to play musical instruments.

Nguyen Thi Lam, an 80-year-old woman from Quang Nam Province, decided to take up piano as a hobby despite her age to continue the dream that was left undone due to family hardship in the past.

She was gifted with musical instruments from the very young age and even became member in a local music club, but later had to give up her passion for music and began making a living to help her parents with financial condition.

Lam later experienced an unhappy marriage and had to do everything from farming to making Vietnamese traditional cakes to raise five children after their divorce.

Lam only began to think about her own passion at 60 when she was walking past a piano being played in the local church, but got rejected when she asked for learning admission due to her age.

Her dream finally came true at the age of 80 when she moved to Ho Chi Minh City and came across an advertisement for a piano course available for the elderly on the Internet.

Lam signed up for the course and took the bus to class every morning to fulfill the last hope of her life.

“I’ve never thought I could pursue my dream at this age,” her eyes gleamed with absolute happiness.

She put her heart and soul in every lesson and piece of music she learnt despite limited receptivity and flexibility of people at her age, which impressed Tran Thi Tho, Lam’s piano teacher at Upponia music center in Ho Chi Minh City.

Nguyen Thi Lam, 80, learns to play the piano under careful instructions of the teacher. Photo: My Lang / Tuoi Tre

Tho said that her senior student was very attentive in her class, always took note carefully and practice hard to give her best performance.

“She maybe older than any of my students, but she has the heart made of full determination and passion that no one can compare,” said Tho about the one and only 80-year-old student in her class.

Lam could now play up to 25 numbers by the piano as well as the organ and she even mastered one of the hardest Vietnamese song named “Lang Toi” (My Village), which made her feel proud of herself.

She also said that music changed her life for the better and she felt thankful to be able to pursue her dream at this age.

“It might be late, but it’s worth the wait,” she said.

Nguyen Thi Lam takes a bus to the piano center every morning. Photo: My Lang / Tuoi Tre

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