Million Reasons to Quit
I had a million reasons to give up or not even start on shinobue in 2020. These were my thoughts.
I'm already in my mid-50s. What if I'm too old?
Heck, even when I was young (middle school), I tried the (Western) flute, couldn't stop feeling dizzy, hated it, and gave up. Why try again?
I'm not in Japan, which means online lessons (this was in May 2020, so online lessons weren't popular yet.) Will it even work?
Would anyone care about this obscure instrument, even if I performed it??
How would I get this instrument, especially during a world pandemic???
Even after I started studying with Bunta Sensei, the first year was rough. Every day, I worked on boring and unglamorous fundamental skills. It felt like I was not going anywhere fast. I thought my tone would never get better. But little by little, the changes were happening—so little, I didn't even notice. Now I look back and am really glad I didn't quit, especially knowing I can let others in the world know about the beauty of this instrument.
If you are feeling discouraged about shinobue, don't quit. Keep on going. You don't even notice, but you ARE getting better. And one day, you look back and say, "Wow, this was so hard, but now I can play it." ❤️