I have two kids. My daughter Dana is 18 (going on 30), and my son Chris is 15. Dana is going to college and I'm proud of how well she's doing there. Chris lives with me and is a sophomore in high school. A few months ago, he came to me with a request to buy a guitar. We'd been through the musical instrument phase before when he attempted to play the trumpet a couple of years ago. That didn't work out because he lost interest and didn't practice at all. So it was reasonable for me to be a little skeptical this time. I gave it a few days, and he still wanted to do it, so I said OK and got him an entry level electric guitar (I suggested getting an acoustic to start with, but he wanted the electric).
Chris enrolled in "Guitar 1" at school and the journey began. Chris tends to forget things for school and leave them at home, but I began to notice he never forgot his guitar. Soon, he asked me for another guitar...yes, an acoustic. Apparently for the purposes of the class, he needed the acoustic. Yes, I did say "I told you so." So I picked up a decent acoustic guitar for him. He's working it off with some extra chores around the house btw.
I began to notice Chris practicing in his room at night while I was downstairs. At first, he was fumbling with the notes and I couldn't figure out what he was trying to play. Then, something magical started to happen. I began to hear music. And it was GOOD. I'd hear the Beatles "Daytripper" or "Satisfaction" by the Stones coming out of his room with very few, if any, mistakes! I was amazed that he was picking it up so fast. I was very proud of Chris and I told him so. He was showing dedication to something and really doing it well.
He's still practicing a couple of hours a night and I keep hearing different songs that he's picked up. The kid is good. Who knows, maybe he'll be in a famous band someday...you never know. Then, I could finally get that beach house in Florida that I've been dreaming about! Afterall, you never forget who gave you your first guitar, right?
Will Johnson
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