It’s good to practice…
I make myself practice. I should be clear about this, especially when I have suggested to so many people over the years that repetition, mileage, and yes practice, are good things. I don’t practice easily. Once I get started I practice well, I actually enjoy both the activity and the results. But I don’t start easily. There have been many reasons over the years, I always have to watch for which one is at play in any given moment of avoidance. Is it too soon before something else I promised myself I’d do? No, remember that even two minutes working on something adds up, and you’ve got the better part of ten minutes now. Is it too late, or too early? No, I’ve both played well and enjoyed playing at all times of the night and day, so right now is as good a time as any. Is it no use because it’s all going to sound like street repairs anyway? No, enough sensible people like what I do that I’m not a great judge in this particular moment, and experience has shown me that even practicing when I’m not feeling good about my playing is mileage that counts. Maybe more. Because I know I can play well when I’m on top of the world and everything’s perfect. I practice, in part, so that when I’m not on top of the world, when everything is definitely not perfect, I can still play well. Maybe better.
I used to have a thing about practicing when someone else could hear me. I felt self-conscious. I’m better now. I lived across the river from a church that had a couple of guys who played the bells. I noticed that they would practice, and everyone could hear them. Everyone. And when they made a mistake the whole world didn’t grind to a halt. Kind of put the whole thing into perspective for me. So now I practice. And it pays off.
But I don’t start easily.