Both my parents have been advocates of music instruments and have always pushed me and my sisters to at least learn one instrument, preferably the piano. My eldest sister started playing the piano when she was seven; as soon as she learned how to read, my parents enrolled her in a piano class. I was amazed at seeing her play, and I knew that my turn would come in the blink of an eye. Once I started the course, it was nothing like I had expected. I became frustrated and impatient and I could not see how my sister wasn’t the same. I would press a note on the piano keyboard, but I would get it wrong almost every time. Playing the piano became a constant chore, something I had to get done with two times a week, although after some time I realised that it was much more than that.

     My family would describe me as very impatient. If I can’t get something correct the first time, I get very agitated and borderline angry, and I admit, it is one of my bad traits. I hadn’t realized how much this characteristic influenced my life until I started playing the piano, around the age of ten. At first, I thought it was fun, learning the names of the notes, hearing the beautiful sounds that would come off the piano once my teacher started playing, but then the more I got into it, the deeper I delved into the world of music and learning how to play an instrument, the more frustrated I became. After school, I would sit down to try and practice, but to no avail. How was my sister that good, but I couldn’t even get the first five notes right? The way she played was so fluent and smooth, but when my fingers hit the keyboard it was chaos. I became so angry at myself, that at that point, even my sister could tell that I was struggling. She came, sat me down, and we had a serious conversation about how no one is perfect, and not everything is easy at first, and she emphasized that only practice and patience makes perfect. My sister showed me a video when she was about the same age as I am now, and you could see that she was struggling, but also the way she played was nothing like how she plays now. It all dawned on me. My struggles were all part of the process. Without struggling, I wouldn’t be able to learn new things, in this case learn the piano, and everyday from then on, I looked at the situation in a different light.

     Months passed and I could see how much better I had gotten. Once I realized that being angry is okay, and learning to have patience and trust the process is the key to success, I became better everyday. Now, I voluntarily sit down and play. The notes are smooth, and my fingers flow through the keyboards, and the music that is produced is delightful. Now I understand why my parents wanted us to learn an instrument. It is a type of discipline, learning how to overcome obstacles and be patient enough to not see results overnight. Playing the piano is not a chore anymore, it is not merely something ‘I had to do’, it is something so much more. It is what relaxes me when I’m stressed, and it is what brings me joy when I’m sad, and I finally understand that to be good at something patience and practice is all that you need.