Feeling the thrill of playing music is one of the great things about being alive.
I’ve sometimes been a little guilty in the past of not enjoying the “moment” as much as I should.
…And thinking too far ahead to the next thing.
But playing guitar brings me right back in the moment.
That’s because you can’t fully “give” to the guitar without being fully present in the moment.
Speaking of special moments, me and Archie were laughing the other day.
We were looking at a photograph from our trip to the theme park last week.
…And specifically an incident on the “Master Blaster” waterslide.
I’d already been on that waterslide a few years ago…
I had forgotten how crazy it was.
You sit on a big rubber ring, hold on tight, and wait for the machinery inside the slide that powers it…
And off you go down the slide at breakneck speed.
I’d checked Archie’s height and he was plenty tall enough to go on it, and I know these things are regulated and pretty safe.
He wanted me to go first, to be ready for him at the bottom.
As I went down the slide, I was thinking, “Oh no, Archie is going to hate this.”
As I waited for him at the bottom, my heart was thudding like a Chet Atkins bassline on overdrive.
“Where is he?” I thought.
“What’s the delay?”
I hoped he hadn’t got hurt in there, or worse, stuck.
I was starting to get a bit panicky, and then it was like slow motion….
Archie’s little face appeared out from the slide…
And instead of him crying or bleeding (you know it’s easy to think the worst when it comes to your kids)…
He was smiling and looking so relaxed it was like he could have been on a spa day or something.
Phew.
I was so relieved and happy.
Archie was beaming as he told me how much he loved the slide.
Plus, there were photos being taken when you come out of the mouth of the slide.
The photo of me was terrible with my face all scrunched up as I got blasted with water.
…But Archie’s super relaxed-looking photo was great.
We bought the photo, and now we get to remember that little moment forever.
So what’s the moral of this story?
It all relates back to what I mentioned at the beginning of this email.
It’s all about being “in the moment”.
Enjoying every second in life where you can.
It’s easy to worry about things or think ahead or fear the worst.
Many guitarists worry if they are actually improving or not.
They worry about what others will think if they hear them play.
…And they forget to enjoy the moment.
That was a special little moment for both me and Archie and highlighted just how important it is to be in the moment.
And of course, when you get funny and special moments like that, you want more of them.
You see, with the guitar, we have many opportunities to enhance our life.
…Playing purely for ourselves after a long day.
…Using the guitar to escape from tough times in life.
…Sharing joy and special times through music and jamming with other musicians.
There are so many things we can do, no matter what you want to achieve on the guitar.
It’s always a good idea to try to have at least one special little moment each day playing music.
Some people get hung up on the big picture of trying to achieve many things and they forget that.
Keep making memories with the guitar… even if they are purely for you.
Anyway, I hope that was helpful to you.
Keep enjoying your playing.
If you want more help or advice from yours truly, then you might like to check this out.
The Dan Thorpe Acoustic Academy
Have a great day…
Dan Thorpe
Guitar Domination
P.S. This post was originally taken from Dan Thorpe’s private email list. To get blog posts like this sent to you which are full of great tips to make fingerpicking, strumming, and learning guitar more enjoyable (especially if you are over 40) join Dan’s list. It’s 100% free, HERE.
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