Piano Teacher
Most parent believe that participation in extracurricular activities affect a child in a lot of good ways. My parent were no exception. When I was a kid, after school I was always being driven from piano to volleyball to self-defense classes and so on. At the time, I thought I was the world’s busiest teenager. However, after all these years, I can easily see that I have gained some important benefits from those activities. Playing the piano is probably the greatest benefit.
In the meantime, it would be a big lie for me to say that my appreciation for playing the piano came immediately. Since the time I was ten years old until I was twelve or thirteen, I absolutely detested Sunday afternoons. Of course by then, it was not called Sunday for me but the torturous “piano day”. I had to practice all the morning before the lesson in the afternoon, and became totally exhausted in the evening. When it was finally over, I had relief as of am incredible amount of weight had been pulled from my shoulders.
In those days, I never got to see the importance of having those lessons, practicing for hours, and even playing those tunes. As much as I tried, I could never find a way to enjoy it; it was no more than some never-ending horrible homework for me. But today, I want to thank my teacher for forcing me to appreciate the art of music. Now, I can easily list playing the piano as one of the most refreshing aspects of my life. Whenever I feel sadness, I always have the chance to be up in clouds after a couple of minutes. Swaying back and forth, I can surrender myself to the soothing tunes and get lost in the harmony. I believe very few people have that kind of luxury and I am absolutely grateful for that.
Although, I never recognized by then, because of those lessons I became more disciplined as a human being. As I developed self-control, I gained confidence. I learned how to manage my time more effectively; which helps me nowadays to manage two jobs and full time school. Even though it was more in the subconscious level at the time, I also grew spiritually by recognizing the power of music. My personality must to admit that I hated the lessons and practicing, but not music itself. It was the obligation to do those things. All of these helped me a lot throughout my later life.
I wish I would have the chance to meet my piano teacher today and thank her for all the lessons that I despised. While, I thought it was completely useless by then, now I can see the positive effect of playing the piano in my social and emotional life. I can understand why my parents were so compelled about me taking those lessons. I am glad they were, because that made me a better man today.