Enthusiasm is everything.

How do you begin something new? What things do you need? Enthusiasm is one thing and personal connection is another. These, of course, are not the only things. This is the beginning of a new experience: learning to play my electric guitar.

To preface this, I have owned the electric guitar and equipment for almost 13 months. I have also paid for a mobile app, Fender Play, for the same amount of time. I still have yet to pick it up and learn to play it.

The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.

B.B. King

I have also grown up with many people playing guitar around me. When I was young and visiting my grandparents, my Grandpa would play and sing his favourite songs and we would sing along. My Mom learned from my Grandpa, so she had her own guitar and played around me as well. When he passed, my brother, Nathan, picked up the skill and played in a few “garage” bands. Although, it was not common to hear him play a whole song – just a whole lot of Smoke on the Water. When my Grandma was sick, she was living with us, at my Mom’s house, for quite some time and she loved playing as well – I think it reminded her about Grandpa and it brought her closer to him.

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As you can see, guitars have brought many memories to me as a child and an adult. I think this is why I am so interested, especially being “musically ungifted.”

My goal is not black and white. Something like this takes time to learn and I intend this learning to go very slowly. I would ultimately love to learn to play a Maroon 5 song but will consider it a success if I learn a few notes. If I pick the right Maroon 5 song, I might be okay with a few notes!

I really look most forward to feeling a connection to my Grandpa that passed and playing some of the songs he loved.

Follow along to see how things progress with this goal!