Playing Guitar

I’m reminded of the John Mellencamp song where he says, “Forget about all that macho sh*t and learn how to play guitar, play guitar...”

I’m no stranger to the fact that being able to play an instrument can be cool when you’re a kid, bearing in mind, of course, that certain instruments have more cache than others. I think the rock and roll instruments hover high up on the cool spectrum, especially guitar. Drums are up there, as well, especially for guys, but drums are a production, and are not conducive to social settings.

Guitar, on the other hand, can be easily transported, and if you ever end up somewhere where there is a guitar, you can just pick it up and play. Plus, there is just something cool about playing guitar.

This has played out on a number of occasions with A. She has had numerous opportunities to play her guitar and perform, in front of friends and strangers, and I think she gets a big kick out of it. Even though I’m a boring old parent, I can appreciated the cool factor that it brings with it. What makes it all the more cool is that she is a real student of the instrument and thinks about things like chords and music theory. She then applies it to different songs she likes, and will sit quietly and figure out tunes. It’s great to see.

As I’ve mentioned, she is doing a world music class with her friends and they are singing a song she knows and has performed in the past. When the teacher learned of this, she asked her to bring in her guitar, and now she is going to play and sing a solo. She is excited about it, and again, I think it’s cool. Somewhere down the line in life, our kids will appreciate the ability to play. They doesn’t have to be an impresarios, but they just need a rudimentary knowledge to have fun with it.

And, of course, to be cool, which when you really get down to it, is what being a kid is all about.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Kristijan Žontar for the pic.