Christmas Eve at my grandparents house always included my grandpa Jack Anderson playing piano or the autoharp and singing Christmas carols.
Silver Bells was his favorite and continues to be a favorite of our family. This year I set a goal to learn how to play the song on the piano in time for Christmas. I played piano when I was a kid but quit after a couple years and never achieved a level of proficiency.
That experience still helped me to learn to read music and I knew I could learn to play the piece if I practiced the song 50 times. That's where I hit a roadblock. I got started in November and made some early progress, but then work and home responsibilities and other distractions got in the way. I ended up only practicing 10 times and while the right hand melody sounded good and I was making progress on the left hand, together I wasn't ready.
On the other hand, my daughter, Hannah, had been practicing nonstop. Now she's had many moments of frustration and resistance to practicing, but she worked through these to prepare not only for her recital, but she asked if she could play piano at church Christmas Eve.
I still remember Hannah's first recital when she was six years old. When it was her time to play her songs at the recital, she hid under a chair. I spent the next 20 minutes trying to convince her that it would be ok and she could do it.
Five years later, I sat in church on Christmas Eve listening to her make beautiful music with a sense of pride, not because she's talented and smart, but instead because she worked really hard to achieve this level of proficiency and is committed to continue honing her skills. See her performance here (58 minutes into broadcast in case direct link doesn't work): https://www.facebook.com/share/v/NEAcrTLRcchZdkmZ/?mibextid=KsPBc6&s
While I still may try to learn how to play Silver Bells next year, my roadblocks and Hannah's success on the piano already helped me learn the process involved with building skill.
Practice and repetition builds behaviors of excellence.
Learn In The Flow Of Life
Jason
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