Budding Musicians

Austin has been taking guitar lessons for a few years now and has done pretty well. He started I believe in kindergarten but then took a year or two break before he decided he did want to learn after all. Katlyn is beginning piano lessons this week. When I told her I hoped she would learn well so she could play for church when she was older, she told me she was going to practice so she could play like Kim Collingsworth or Dino! Yeah! I love it! Katlyn is almost 10 and just starting and Kim started at I think 3 or 4 years of age. Hopefully she'll get further than I did. I never got out of the first book. When I was in college I met a man one night as I was waitressing and found he played piano for a large Methodist church and gave lessons. I thought maybe he could help me and I would be more committed than I had been in elementary school. I went to a couple of lessons and he was very strict about the timing which I just could not do. One day he asked me to stand up and let him play something and I thought he was going to play the lesson for me so I did but he played a song then stood up and asked me to sit down and play that same song. I did and I don't know how but I was able to play just what he had just played. He looked at me and said, "I hate you!" and walked out of the room. I didn't know what had just happened. He came right back and said he didn't know how to play a single thing unless he had the notes right in front of him or he had previously memorized the piece. Apparently I had just played something that took him a little time to memorize. I don't really know how to play a whole lot but I have been able to copy styles and songs over the years and it has helped me in my children's ministry and even one night when we were at the jail service and the guys started singing a song and I was able to pick the tune up and play it along with them. I was so thankful that night that I could do that because the guys really seemed to appreciate it. I did quit my piano lessons with that man because I felt I just couldn't do what he wanted me to do. Practice!

Anyway, now it is my daughter's turn and I hope she does well.