Phil Penne Creations

#31 - The Musician

 

 

        You were given your first guitar for your tenth birthday. It was a decrepit Stella your parents purchased for thirty-five dollars at a pawnshop. It’s not that they were too cheap to buy you a new one, but they assumed this was yet another passing fancy, like the microscope, the roller skates, and the chemistry set. 

        The finish was cracked and discolored, and two of the strings were missing. Your mom was restoring an old coffee table given to her by the neighbors at the time, so she used some of the materials she already had on hand to strip and refinish the instrument. Your dad, with the help of the local music store, replaced the missing strings. When they gave it to you, you thought it was the most beautiful thing you had ever seen. 

        You spent every spare moment plucking the strings and pouring over the instruction book you got with the guitar (Play Guitar Like a Star, by Tex somebody-or-other), learning to read tablatures, and how to hold your fingers to play chords. All the money you made from mowing lawns, allowance, even babysitting (something no other self-respecting guy in your neighborhood would do) went into buying more acoustic guitars, a couple of electrics, amps, speakers, and every other piece of equipment you could pick up cheap from pawnshops and classified ads... 

 

 

 

We consider as fortunate those who are so focused as to know what they want to do with their life from a young age. Hard work and determination may take you to your destination, but the closest rabbit hole may offer a shortcut.