Memories...

I woke up this morning at an early hour wanting to accomplish a lot. I got out on the street and jogged my 8 miles, took a shower and grabbed a bite to eat. But when it came time to pick up my horn, I just wasn't feeling it. I tried to push through, but to no avail. So I put a new record I just picked up in D.C. on the player and listened to it. The album was an old Maynard Ferguson record that I first heard when I traveled with my High School Band director to Portland, Oregon for the first time to hear the Army Reserve band he was in. We stayed at his co worker's house. I remember he had a couple of cats, and he gave me free reign over his record player and albums. The Maynard album was the one I chose. I remember feeling a great excitement for music at that point in my life. And as I sat and listened to the album, I read the back of the sleeve while the music was playing. My grandpa never liked to read the sleeves while the record was playing. He said it took away from the listening experience. However, one of the beautiful things about being an individual is having your own opinion, and mine differs from him on this matter. After I read the sleeve, I smelled it. Now this may sound weird, but a record sleeve has a very unique smell to it, and when I smell one it brings me back to my grandparent's house, sitting for hours just listening to music. Flooded with memories at this point in the morning gave me the strength to pick up my horn one more time and take one more step toward virtuosity on the trombone. And not only that, but it gave me a renewed enjoyment for what I do for a living. I think its important for all of us to pull from past experiences and apply them to present circumstances to help us blossom even more in our endeavors. May your memories be as rich and pleasant as mine are. Goodnight.