So here was the story I promised you last week! Band try-outs came and went and I didn't audition. I had convinced myself there was no reason to try, so I didn't. Now I'm very lucky that I had a babysitter at the time that recognized I had some natural musical abilities. If it would not have been for her, I certainly would not have fixed this particular problem. I guess there is a side lesson here that I will stop for a minute to mention. There are people in your life who help you get past your own fears. Take time to thank them for their help. Even if it is year's later, send them a note or Facebook them. Do something that shows you appreciate what they did for you. So right now, in this book, I would like to say a huge thank you to Julie (Tamplin). You changed my life and I would bet that you don't even know it. You might not even remember this story, but I do and it changed who I became. For that I will be eternally grateful.
Back to my story. So the auditions past and I wasn't in band. About a month went by and Julie noticed that I was drumming around the house with chop sticks. She asked me why I hadn't joined the band when they had try-outs. I, of course made up several excuses as to why I didn't tryout, none of which were true. The truth was that I was chicken. Well Julie, being the good band geek that she was, told me that she knew the band director, Mr. Ling and she thought he would be willing to let me in the band if I really wanted to join. For days, she talked to me about it. Finally, after a week of telling me to go talk to him, I told her I would.
So, I made the decision to go talk to Mr. Ling the next time he was at our school. Now, I'm not going to lie and tell you I was totally confident. There's actually something I should probably tell you about myself. I am painfully shy. Most people nowadays won't believe me, but it's true. It was terribly obvious when I was younger. There was a time when it was so bad, I would hide behind my mom if anyone tried to talk to me. I think this is important to mention, because I know many of you are shy who are reading this book. If fact, I would bet that you have made the same excuses I used to make as to why I wouldn't take advantage of opportunities. Im serious when I say this...DON'T LET YOUR FEAR GET IN THE WAY YOU TAKING ADVANTAGE OF OPPORTUNITY. Sometimes you're going to just have to suck it up and push aside whatever is making you afraid of trying and just simply do it. It really truly is just that simple!
Ok, so I want you to picture this. I was 11 so still pretty small. I walked into the band room and there stood Mr. Ling who I'm telling you must have been 20 feet tall. I felt tiny in comparison to this man. When he noticed me standing in his room, he asked if there was anything he could do for me. I very sheepishly and quietly told him I wanted to join the band. It was really amazing that he even heard what I said. He stood up, walked over, and asked me if I realized that tryouts were last month. I said I did but I was too shy to tryout. He looked at me like he was sizing me up and asked me what I wanted to play. I told him I wanted to play drums to which he responded, "Can you play?". I must have shrugged my shoulders because he chuckled a bit and asked me to sit down at the table. He tapped the table several times and asked me to repeat the rhythm he was tapping. Either he felt sorry for me, or actually thought I had potential because he decided to let me in the band. That one moment, completely changed the course of my life forever. In fact, I can quite honestly sit here and tell you that if it wasn't for that moment, I would not be a musician with the life I have now, I would not have the job I have now, and would not live where I live. I shutter to think of what I would have missed out on if I would have let my fear take control and chosen to just let it go. So, again, thank you Julie for pushing me to go talk to Mr. Ling. And thank you so much Mr. Ling for seeing something in that scared little girl that made you let me join the band. You really have no idea how much you shaped who I have become. So here's another lesson, if you had a teacher who helped you along the way to become who you were meant to be, thank them! I don't think they hear it enough. I think teachers need to know that what they do matters. That they really do change people's lives. Sometimes, I'm sure for them, it just feels like chaos, but teachers truly make a difference. Mr. Ling, you were my gmae changer! Thank you a million times over! Shame on me for not telling you that sooner.
So seriously, when I tell you that there are moments in your life that will forever change you or the course you are on, believe me that it's true. I would bet money that you can come up with those moments and identify what happened and who was involved. Now I won't lie, sometimes those moments are terrible and tear you apart. Sometimes those moments are wonderful and lift you up. Whatever your moments, be proud of the fact that you were ready to take advantage of the opportunity when it presented itself. Can you imagine what your life would have been like if you would have missed the opportunity? I shutter to think what my life would have been like. I can point back to so many things in my life that changed the day I walked in to that band room.
I'll tell you about another moment next week! This is one of my favorite lessons from Eli, so we're going to spend some time on it!
No comments:
Post a Comment