Yanni

Yanni's most of all loved his Phillips shortwave radio, which was made of dark brown plastic, with a light cream cloth covered speaker. Yanni remembered lying awake at nights after the lights were out with the radio next to his ear, twisting the dial through the crackle and hum, searching for channels overjoyed at discovering the world. Yanni could pick up stations from Algeria, Egypt, Italy, Germany, The Middle East, and Greece. Yanni would listen to whatever he could, from rock 'n' roll to jazz to Middle Eastern songs. The experience opened his mind to different music and time signatures. Yanni realized that one culture could find beauty in places that another culture didn't understand. But given the chance, that beauty could be shared through melody. Yanni began to appreciate those differences and those similarities. Yanni's affinity for both grew as he spent more time exploring the world beyond himself. Yanni was ready to explore a world much closer at hand.

The name Yanni or it's English Equivalent (John) means "God Is Gracious" in English.

In Greek there are many words to describe the different kinds of love. Yanni's parents raised their kids with agape, which means unconditional love. Simply putting it, no matter how they acted or what they did wrong Yanni's parents never withdrew their love or threatened to.