Guitar Lesson #1

As you all know, my first guitar lesson was last Thursday. How did it go? Pretty darn well. Can't really say if I'm a natural quite yet though; I only learned how to tune my guitar so far. However, I'm really really really glad we're taking baby steps in this class. I was so worried that everyone was going to be miles ahead of me, but it turned out we were all on the same page. On top of that, the teacher is really nice too. It's easy to see he has a passion for playing the guitar, and this makes the class even more enjoyable.

During the first few minutes of class, we went down the line and explained why we wanted to start playing the guitar. Here's pretty much how it went:

Guy #1: "Well, I pretty much just want to play the guitar because it looks cool. Plus, I'll finally
know how to do something!"

Girl #2: "My two favourite songs are played by guitar. This was pretty much my inspiration to
play, and I'm really interested in learning other songs as well."

Girl #3: "I got this guitar as a present 3 years ago; its been sitting in my closet ever since. I
figured it would only be fair to take it out for a test drive instead of letting it lay around
collecting dust."

I was actually surprised by some of these answers! And yes, I know what you're probably wondering: "What was Alyssa's reason for playing the guitar?"

I've pretty much always wanted to play an instrument, but never got further than playing the recorder in grade 3. I'm also very passionate about music; I sing, dance and writing songs practically everyday. Then, when I went to Montreal about a month ago, I met a girl who played the guitar, sung and wrote her own songs. She even sang Lauryn Hill's version of "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You." It was at this very instant that a little light bulb went on in my head. I can do this, I thought. Plus, I couldn't think of a single thing that was holding me back. Time goes by fast, so might as well do what we want while we still can!

Usually, I lose motivation and give up quite easily. But, after a month, I was still really eager to play the guitar. I had tried to sign up for lessons about a week after my trip, but the class was full so I was put on the waiting list. Wasn't meant to be, I thought. Then, about a week ago, I got a call saying that someone had dropped the class! I'm a strong believer that everything happens for a reason, and I definitely think this was a sign to join the class. So, I did. :)

One thing I learned after high school was to take chances. I suddenly had an epiphany that time was going by so fast and I had to make the best of life. I remember seeing a little 7th grader walking down the street in his "Class of '07" shirt and thinking to myself, "No way, it's been 6 years since I graduated elementary school? It seems like it was just yesterday!" Ever since my high school graduation I've been planning out my priorities for the next few years: school, travelling, and music. I figure I don't have much to lose and, on top of this, I'm the type of person that gets driven nuts when I don't take chances and end up spending the rest of my years wondering what could have been.


So, for now, I'll leave you with this:

Carpe Diem! (Seize the day!)