1,000 Days of Piano - Day 160: Standing Still

I realized something the other day. If you work diligently at developing talent by learning new skills and practicing them daily, you will improve. (That’s not the realization.) If you think you don’t have the time to devote to attaining mastery and you just want to maintain your skills, simply practice what you’ve already learned. You won’t go forward, but you won’t go backward, either. If you stop practicing altogether, you will lose your skills.
For some bizarre reason, I thought that most skills were like riding a bike. Once you learn how to ride a s a child, that skill stays with you. You might be a little wobbly the first time you get on after many years, but once you kick off, you’re riding without falling down. For piano, depending on how far you progressed, it isn’t quite the same. If you practice what you already know, you can maintain your skills. You can stand still. If you fail to practice, day by day your skills with wither up, and you’ll no longer be able to play.
Advanced students who haven’t played in a long time, may retain the fundamentals—chords and scales, and simple tunes. Intermediate students who haven’t touched the instrument for years may be able to pick out the simplest tune. The beginner who stops playing will lose everything.

Sometimes it’s good to stand still and maintain skills, to pause and take a break. It’s just important to remember to practice the skills you want to keep.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 146 and Day 13

I’m goofing off here, holiday tune (or lack thereof), crazy hair, and all. I’ve pushed through discouragement and doubt, hit the 15,000 word mark, and it’s time to play. I just wanted to see if I could really make a song recognizable with chords only. It’s all about holding the vision. Even if a mirror was clearly not involved.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 146 and Day 11

I managed to get through 48 measures of the Mozart. It’s barely hanging together, but it’s progress. I’ve gotten through 11,500 words of my story since November 1. I’m getting through without being discouraged, which is the true miracle. I’m actively and deliberately staying positive. I have to catch myself a lot. “Nope, not gonna go there,” I keep telling myself. It’s the only way I can stay in the game.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 144 and Day 9

I chose the first sixteen measures of George Winston’s Prelude because it’s a seasonal piece that doesn’t scream tinsel and it’s quiet enough to play around tired folks on a Saturday night. George Winston is not in the Suzuki repertoire, of course, but neither is Johnny Marks, whose music does scream tinsel (think Rudolph). I like to mix things up near the holidays.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 143 and Day 8

Today I am pushing myself. I’m not forcing myself to stretching my limits out of any sense of obligation to meet some arbitrary goal of satisfy a sense of insecurity. I simply felt like it. On a Friday evening, I’m tempted to put my feet up and relax, but I feel such a fond attachment to the people in my life, the projects I’m committed to, and even my own sense of maintaining myself, that I want to express that with my actions. So I’m pushing myself...at least until I don’t feel like it anymore. Or I decide I don’t feel like facing negative consequences. Either way, it’s a new feeling I’m getting accustomed to. 

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 142 and Day 7

I’ve missed three days of posting to my blog, and I have only 6,400 words written so far. I should have cracked over 10,000 words by now. My music fell off the piano during my recording. I should be asleep right now, instead of playing with my phone. Nothing matters right now except that I am choosing to be overjoyed instead of overwhelmed.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 138 and Day 3

I’ve decided that acceptance is going to be my new superpower. When I can accept individuals and circumstances as they are while feeling unrestrained enthusiasm for what they can become, then I have mastered acceptance.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 137 and Day 2

I wish I knew all the answers. I wish I knew at least some of the answers. I wish I didn’t feel so vulnerable. It is so satisfying to solve problems and bring clarity to confusion. Sometimes, though, it’s best for me to sit with my bewilderment and let the answers I seek come to me. When I embrace the unknowing, I allow the learning to unfold in its own time. For me, confidence is not just being comfortable with all the knowledge and skill and wisdom that I have, but being comfortable with all of the knowledge, skill, and wisdom I have yet to acquire.

1,000 Days of Piano and 30 Days of Noveling - Day 136 and Day 1

It’s Day 1 of National Novel Writing Month and Day 136 of my piano blog. I started my novel, which is important, even if I didn’t reach my word goal. I practiced some pieces, even if I didn’t put in enough work to record anything more on the Mozart Sonata. Most importantly, I practiced unrestrained joy and excitement about all of it. I let myself enjoy the glorious autumn day, the tang and promise of a Friday before a long weekend, even though I didn’t start my day in a fury of creativity. This is one of those days when it just feels good to be in the game.