If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
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Friday, April 16, 2010

Flashback Friday



Mocha with Linda has another Flashback Friday Question for us. Click above to go and link up with her and play along.

If you have a child in your life, your calendar for April and May is probably quickly filling up with end-of-year activities - performances, recitals, etc. Did you take lessons as a child? Piano or another instrument? Gymnastics or dance? Other types of lessons? Were they weekly? How much were you required to practice between lessons? Did you participate in recitals? If so, do any of them stand out in your memory? Did they foster a love or a hate for that activity? Did you want to take lessons in a certain thing that you never got to? And if you have kids now, how did your experiences with taking lessons like these impact the activities you had/have them do?

I took piano lessons starting in 2nd grade and ending when I graduated high school.  Sometimes we were allowed to take the summer months off.  Our lessons were weekly and we were supposed to practice daily.  Let's just say as I got older this didn't always happen.  There were times I'd go back for the next week's lesson and I hadn't practiced at all.  Now understand, I was always playing the piano, but just not my lessons.  

I played in several recitals.  Hated them.  I remember the first one was in a big church in our town.  I had my song memorized and I remember playing and messing up and I didn't know what to do, so I just stopped and looked out at the audience.  I don't remember any more of it, I just remember sitting there and looking at the audience.  I was probably in about the 3rd grade.  I hadn't been playing very long.  Then I changed to a different teacher and she had a great big old house and she had the recitals in her home.  I was always so scared and I remember standing in a different room of her house waiting for my turn.  I would literally pray that I would break a finger or something so I wouldn't have to take my turn.  But alas, that never happened and I'd have to walk across the living room in front of all those "suffering parents" and into the piano room and sit down and play.  That is so much pressure!  Glad that parts done.  Of course, now I play in church all the time, so I guess it was good practice and preparation.

My kids have taken some music lessons but not a lot.  I guess I wasn't as tough as my mom.  Mom gave us no choice but to take until we graduated.  I let my girls try it for a year and then if they didn't want to I didn't make them continue.  One took flute lessons (well in the band at school) for a year and a half and the other took guitar lessons, until her volleyball and work schedule interfered.  I guess I should have started them younger.

Now, go visit Linda and play along with us.  I want to hear your story. 

6 comments:

  1. I really never took any thing. Mo dance, cheering, music...nada! I just always injoyed the fresh air and played outside...oh , well unless you count all the clubs I was in(DECA, FFA and BETA, Prom Steering Committee and EZA).

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  2. Al this Flashback-ing is very interesting! Reading all the different perspectives.

    Have a wonderful weekend>
    R

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  3. My kids didn't like recitals, either. I was hoping they'd persevere to get past that, but they never did. I am glad you enjoy playing at church now.

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  4. It's such fun reading everyone's memories. Whoever invented recitals definitely had a sadistic streak! LOL Our recitals were held at a piano store.

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  5. I think music lessons are critical for children. Music opens up new brain passages that might not ever open at a young age.

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  6. I really wish that I had learned to play the piano (I didn't because I had a wrist condition and the doctor recommended against it). I did play the flute for seven years yet I haven't touched one since I graduated from high school - 22 years ago!

    I hope that one of my boys will play either the piano or guitar.

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Thanks for visiting and commenting. Have a wonderful Day!

Cathy