I remember as five year old I was asked by my mother to select an instrument I wanted to learn to play. Of course, the violin was my only choice since my cousin was also taking violin lessons. Little did I know that this decision would result in my greatest triumphs and my lifelong nemesis. Through the seven years of lessons, which seemed interminable, I learned much more than just how to play the violin. I learned intangibles that would serve me throughout my entire life.
I learned perseverance. You see, the violin was fun for a little while while it was new and I had a teacher who was invested in my success. However, when I got older, I wanted to do homework, school work, any kind of work instead of practice the required half-hour a day. I was not allowed to quit. I was told the someday the things I was learning would serve me well. As a seven-year-old, that sounded so lame and way too far into the future, but my elders were right.
My childhood in Romania was less than idyllic, but we didn't know any differently, so we didn't complain. Our futures under communism were set from the first day in first grade. Yet a miracle took place when at the age of thirteen my mother and I emigrated to the United States. Imagine starting a new life in a new place where everything was new and very strange. The customs, language and choices I hadn't experienced before were as it were spread at my feet. It was up to me to make something of myself. I was a teenager, a term I didn't come to understand much later, but my concerns weren't going to dances with my peers, or being popular. All I wanted was to be able to communicate with others. I remember practicing in the bathroom mirror for hours trying not to roll my "r"s, getting the "th" sound just right. I was determined not to be any less than my peers.
Now, forty years later, I can only thank my elders who didn't let me quit the thousands of times when I stomped my feet, cried crocodile tears and hid under the table just so I wouldn't have to practice. I was well used to this soft skill that has carried me through in life. I did't give up until I got it right. I am not "gifted" I was taught perseverance.
I learned perseverance. You see, the violin was fun for a little while while it was new and I had a teacher who was invested in my success. However, when I got older, I wanted to do homework, school work, any kind of work instead of practice the required half-hour a day. I was not allowed to quit. I was told the someday the things I was learning would serve me well. As a seven-year-old, that sounded so lame and way too far into the future, but my elders were right.
My childhood in Romania was less than idyllic, but we didn't know any differently, so we didn't complain. Our futures under communism were set from the first day in first grade. Yet a miracle took place when at the age of thirteen my mother and I emigrated to the United States. Imagine starting a new life in a new place where everything was new and very strange. The customs, language and choices I hadn't experienced before were as it were spread at my feet. It was up to me to make something of myself. I was a teenager, a term I didn't come to understand much later, but my concerns weren't going to dances with my peers, or being popular. All I wanted was to be able to communicate with others. I remember practicing in the bathroom mirror for hours trying not to roll my "r"s, getting the "th" sound just right. I was determined not to be any less than my peers.
Now, forty years later, I can only thank my elders who didn't let me quit the thousands of times when I stomped my feet, cried crocodile tears and hid under the table just so I wouldn't have to practice. I was well used to this soft skill that has carried me through in life. I did't give up until I got it right. I am not "gifted" I was taught perseverance.
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