Penny Pitamber still remembers last year's tornado vividly.
"I was on the sofa back there with my dogs on my lap, because there's water everywhere, and the windows have blown out and there's glass everywhere. You can't get up, you can't do anything, you have no power. And that's how it was all night long," she recounts.
The tornado damaged nearly everything in Penny's home, but one thing was completely untouched: her 1937 Baldwin piano.
Since last year's storm, a new roof and furniture have repaired Penny's home. But this piano is what healed Penny's heart.
"I needed something familiar," she said. "There wasn't anything."
Penny dove headfirst into her music. She was giving lessons two days after the tornado hit, and played hymns of praise during her time at home.
"It's sacred music that is just so compelling for me as far as what I want to say in my heart," explained Penny.
The families she has met through music have expedited her healing process as well. Many of the people who helped Penny with household repairs were former students. Families of her current students shopped for her and picked up basic necessities.
And in return, Penny leaves each of these families feeling inspired.
"Resilience," the mother of one student said. "Even through the storm - seeing her attitude, being vulnerable and transparent, and yet always seeing the silver lining."
That's a lesson you can't find in any piano book.