LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Music can move people in many ways, but one Little Rock man is making it his mission to inspire others with his piano skills.
Darnell Paul, 23, explains that his music “makes me feel happy and at peace” and believes it has the same effect on others.
One day each week, Darnell entertains people at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. Darnell can’t read music, but he plays by ear.
Darnell explains that all of his chords and melodies are natural talents, and that he “never took lessons, he just taught himself.”
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This is quite surprising considering that the piano man also suffers from an intellectual disability in addition to other medical conditions.
I first met Darnell at a cancer fundraiser at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
Darnell played an electronic keyboard that reverberated beautifully throughout the outdoor stadium. I later learned from his adoptive mother, Shelley Paul, that her son was born prematurely, lacking oxygen and suffering from several mental and physical problems.
Shelley described an incident that happened in the neighborhood as an example of what her son has to deal with.
“There was an incident in my neighborhood where he was riding his bike right in front of me,” she began.
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Shelley also said a neighborhood patrol officer stopped Darnell and began asking him a series of questions he couldn’t answer, including why he hadn’t gone to school, which she said made her think it was “suspicious.”
Darnell and her family hope that by sharing their story, people will become aware of the challenges people with disabilities face every day.
He reminds us all that “processing speed may change, but value does not.”
In the meantime, he continues to play the piano every week, hoping people will decipher the messages in his melodies.