Here’s how it played out …

Our daughter was getting married in the summer in our backyard.

While the setting and experience was hopefully going to be magical, I really wanted to do something that demonstrated how much she is loved — and I thought by tackling something completely foreign to me and then showcasing my new talent at her wedding, it would be something for her to remember.

Fairly early on in my learning endeavour it became obvious that it would be remembered by everyone — the question was whether or not I would completely embarrass myself.

I decided to learn to play the guitar and sing a song for her at the wedding reception. If I was going to to do this, I was starting from scratch with just over 7 months before the big day.

What was I thinking?

Several years ago I was gifted a guitar, but I had not taken the initiative to learn it yet. It was ‘left-handed’ for good reason, and when I took it out in November 2022 to try a few chords, I soon discovered that this was not going to be a quick study.

After several attempts at a few chords I came to the conclusion that it was not going well — at all. I practiced a LOT, but each hand wanted to do the other one’s actions. Getting them to do different things — the right things — was proving to be a significant obstacle.

I decided to go to a local music store and ask them for their advice on re-stringing it to right-handed. Thank goodness that I was treated with kindness and respect. It could have been ‘game over’ if I was ridiculed. The salesperson was wonderful. He told me that my guitar was excellent, but that restringing it might not work as it might not tune properly. He offered to restring it and try it out. I agreed and came back the next day.

It worked. Not a perfect re-do, but pretty darn close.

I took it home and started over. At first, I couldn’t practice longer than about 10 min as the pain in my finger tips was real. I needed to build up some calluses to absorb the string tension before I could begin to get serious about becoming somewhat competent.

It was now December 2022 and I realized that I needed help. One of our school administrators played the guitar and I went asking if he would consider meeting with me to help. He was incredibly generous and met me a couple of times to teach me the chords I needed for my song choice.

In early January 2023 I began practicing every day — building the ‘muscle memory’ for both the chord positions and strumming. I was still terrible — consistently terrible, but my mentor kept encouraging me.

The lyrics were not the problem as I had learned them by listening and singing on Spotify every day while driving to and from work.

Having my hands do different things while singing turned out to be an incredibly steep obstacle. I continued in my ‘horribleness’ for about 3 1/2 months. It was now March. One of the few bright lights was that my dog seemed to be enjoying the sounds as he lay at my feet.

What a good boy!

Finally, by the end of March something started to ‘click’. I could strum the chords pretty well and now the lyrics were beginning to find their place. It was still no where near performable, but I was finally seeing progress after four months into this journey. I had a little over 3 months to get better — a lot better.

Only my wife (and dog) knew of my plan. The day of the wedding was now upon us. The speeches were finishing — it was time. I asked my daughter to join me at the front — she had no idea what was about to occur. My guitar was brought out and I could hear the comments from our guests:

• “What the heck is he doing?”
• “OMG … I can’t believe he is going to do this!
• “He can play the guitar?”

I suddenly became incredibly nervous — my palms started to sweat and I couldn’t get comfortable. I said a few words — I have no idea at this time time what they were — and then I started to play. I fumbled around a bit, but then settled into a rhythm. The muscle memory was there and I knew the lyrics.

I settled down and the song came together. I made it to the end. There was instantaneous applause and then I looked at my daughter. She was smiling from ear to ear.

I did it.

All of the effort … all of the self doubt … all of the worry … it was all worth it. I took a leap of faith and some significant risk, I committed myself to something new and landed (for the most part) on my feet.

It likely won’t translate into a fee-paying gig any time soon, but, you know what? I received quite a few comments about my courage in tackling this challenge as well as showcasing it in a public forum for the first time.

I was proud of myself.

It was a good reminder of how students must feel when they learn a new skill and need to show it in a classroom, stage or theatre.

Here’s another reminder from all of this. Having the acceptance from others was critical to me in continuing my journey. From the music store employee, my colleague mentor, my wife and my dog — I was encouraged to continue. Public schools provide that kind of environment that promotes courageous effort. I love that about what we do.

And, I know that you’re all wondering … yes, I have room in my calendar for your next event. I don’t charge that much and, not to worry, I’m already working on my second song.

“Sunshine on My Shoulders” – by John Denver (July 15, 2023)