Hello, all, from Z in Texas!

[zys]

Greetings, JustinGuitar Community!

My name is Z. I am super new to learning to play the guitar and am having SUCH a good time with it.

A Little about Me
I’m 40-something (at the time of this posting). Some things I really enjoy are discovering new heart-healthy recipes, great television and movies, singing, music, and road trips to new places.

About 5 years ago, a family member suddenly passed away and my husband and I became instant “parents” (though we are actually aunt and uncle). We soon learned that the youngest (he’s such a beautiful soul) is on the autism spectrum. All of our family members have rallied together to love on the children in the absence of their mother, and we’re so grateful.

As you might imagine, this has been life changing. As a special needs auntie-mommy, I’m constantly working to stay balanced, physically healthy, and emotionally healthy while loving on those around me. Learning the guitar has been helping me with this a lot. And that’s been such a wonderful, surprise blessing.

A Little about My Musical Experience/Background
I’m one of those people who is amazed at how wonderful music feels. I LOVE the sound of instrumental music and of voice. Chords and voice caress my heart and spirit and mind. I have the thought all the time that it’s such a beautiful gift and pleasure that we are designed able to experience music that way.

Music-wise, I learned to play the clarinet in the 6th grade and played it for years. I’ve sung for most of my life. I sang in college in a group that performed quite a bit.

A Little about My Experience with the Guitar
This is my second go at learning the guitar. The first time was a decade or so ago and very short-lived. A few months ago, a handful of Justin’s online instructional videos convinced me that it’s totally okay to not find this easy . . . and so now I actually believe I can do this, just with work and time. Before Justin, I had interpreted my struggles with learning guitar as an indicator that I wasn’t getting it and maybe WOULDN’T (ever) be getting it. (The clarinet had been pretty easy for me to learn, and that led me to interpret my guitar struggles as problematic.) So thank you, Justin, for turning that around for me. I’m really grateful and having a blast learning and growing.

My Main (Learning) Guitar
I am a small woman with short fingers and small hands. People strongly advise us small people to learn on a regular-sized guitar, and I tried . . . I really did . . . but it was so discouraging for me that it made me want to quit. Instead of quitting, I decided to see what would happen if I picked up a 3/4 size guitar. This was maybe a decade or so ago, and at that time Wechter guitars were being produced and sold. I obtained an acoustic-electric travel-sized one . . . and I’m really glad I did.

Every now and then I pick up my standard-sized acoustic Yamaha – just to make sure I can replicate on it what I’m doing on my Wechter.

Here’s the Wechter:

Goals
I am so excited at the idea of being able to sing while accompanying myself on the guitar! The potential of being able to play the following songs excites me all the time and motivates me to keep practicing, learning, and growing:

1. Groovy Kind of Love by Phil Collins (This acoustic version here is GORGEOUS to me!)
2. My Heart is Yours by Justin Nozuka (I am just so in love with this song. Here is the official version.)
3. The Man Who Can’t be Moved by The Script (This tutorial for it) ROCKS.
4. A Thousand Years by Christina Perri (Here is a tutorial for it.)

Conclusion
Deciding to learn the guitar has been SUCH a good decision: It’s great for my mental health, and I just know it’s great for my brain health. If you are reading this and thinking about learning the guitar but are worried that you’ll be slow at it, please consider giving it a go anyway. I’m RIGHT there with you and am still getting major joy from it.

I look forward to participating here at the Justin Guitar Community! See you around! Many blessings!

[tRONd]

Thanks for sharing your stort Zys!
And welcome to the forum
You are absolutly right, i feel it almost the same way with the mental part you talked about, makes me relax and just feel better…
Keep at it, and there is no shame in playing smaller guitars fullsized especially dreadnaughts can be a bit to much some times…
Wish you the very best, and hope to see you play in a AVOYP one day.

[jkahn]

Hey Z, thanks for sharing your story. What a difficult hand you’ve been dealt, dealing with a death in the family and inheriting a kid with special needs. Do you have kids of your own as well?

Guitar time is a special kind of time… just get lost in it. Yes it’s hard but it comes and then you’re able to do things that were impossible before.

[roger_holland]

Hi Z.
That is quite a live changing event suddenly becoming parents of older children… no “growing into period” plus the sadness that coms with it,…well, only when setbacks do the good things come to the surface (unfortunately the bad sometimes too)…now at least you turn it for the better,…so here too I wish you a lot of fun and may you enjoy making music with guitar for a long time to come…
Greetings ,Rogier

[tony]

Welcome to the community, great to hear your story. I fondly remember the first time our family went to Texas back in 1965. We all came home wearing cowboy hats. Then I moved to Australia and there’s a town in Queensland called Texas, so I don’t feel too far from where I was born (Kansas). I found the lesson on one minute chord changes really helped me in the beginning. And choosing a simple 3 chord song as my first song also helped. For me it was all about songs.

[TheMadman_tobyjenner]

Hi Z

Although I responded to your learning log, I guess this should the official WELCOME !! given that you have taken the time to so eloquently introduce yourself. So HI Z !!

Wow I can understand that these circumstances are both challenging while rewarding and imagine it has turned your life upside down in some respect. I would advocate that yes, learning the guitar is a great antidote to counteract some of the stress and will give you so much pleasure in return. But like most of life, expect a bumpy ride of ups and downs. Its a long old haul and you never stop learning but every ounce of effort makes it worth it.

Love your energy and enthusiasm, keep sharing your progress.

Cheers

Toby

[prbushe]

Hi Z and welcome to the community.

You’ll find plenty of support and inspiration here, I’m sure. There will certainly be lots of frustrations along the way but they will be more than made up for with the joy of meeting your personal goals.

[DavidP]

A second warm welcome, Z, as I feel I already know you from your superb Learning Log.

So much wisdom in your share here.

Wish you well with guitar and family.

[skinnyt]

Must have been a real upheaval in your live and good on you for stepping up. Just persevere with Justins course and you will reach your goals.

[Socio]

Welcome to the community Z. Thank you for taking the time to share your story. With your positive attitude I am sure that you will go far in life and in your guitar journey.

[SgtColon]

Hello Z and welcome to the community.

It was a sad and happy story to read, so thank you for sharing it with us.

Glad you found a guitar size that works for you. Just learning can be hard enough without other things that could possible demotivate you.

[pkboo3]

Inspiring story you have, Z. Very nice to meet you. Good luck on your musical journey.

[zys]

Thank you so much for the warm welcome, @tRONd , @jkahn , @roger_holland , @tony, @TheMadman_tobyjenner , @prbushe , @DavidP , @skinnyt, @Socio , and @SgtColon !

I read each of your posts. Your words have encouraged me so much. Some brought me to tears (the good kind ) What a supportive forum. Thank you, again. !

@tRONd: So encouraging! Your words are so appreciated. THANK YOU!

@jkahn : No, my husband and I don’t have kids of our own. The first diaper I changed was on the day the kiddos’ mom passed away. This experience has blessed me a lot, given me tears as well as smiles and joy, and given me a huge respect for parents – especially parents of children with special needs.

@roger_holland : Mmm, yes: THANK YOU. So, so encouraging.

@tony: THANK YOU. Ha! Glad you enjoyed the visit. Visiting Australia is on my bucket list. SOUNDS LIKE A WONDERFUL COUNTRY.

@TheMadman_tobyjenner: Wise, helpful words. THANK YOU! So welcoming and encouraging.

@prbushe: Great words for me to keep in mind. THANK YOU!

@DavidP: THANK YOU SO MUCH, David. I really appreciate it along with all of your helpful words. Thanks for sharing your wisdom and knowledge. Very supportive.

@skinnyt: Aww, thanks. Sometimes I need to hear that. THANK YOU!

@Socio: Very encouraging. I really appreciate it! THANK YOU!

@SgtColon: Yes, it’s both sad and happy. It’s definitely helping me to appreciate the good and to interact with others as though they could be going through ANYTHING. And thank you for the affirmation about the guitar!

BLESSINGS, ALL, AND I’LL “SEE YOU” AROUND THE COMMUNITY! GODSPEED WITH YOUR ENDEVAORS, BOTH WITH THE GUITAR AND OTHERWISE!

[zys]

@pkboo3 , thank you so much! Nice to meet you as well.

[glpguitar]

Such a touching story. You and your husband (and the entire family) are great people!

Welcome to the community and enjoy your guitar/music journey. It is definitely a neverending path of self-expression. Looking forward to hearing more from you!

[zys]

@glpguitar, what kind words. Means a lot. Thanks so much!

[philsmith]

Hi Z, welcome to the community. What a story and hope that fitting learning guitar into an already busy life pays dividends for you. It certainly is a great activity to help you focus on time for yourself. Keep it up and you will see the benefits.

[zys]

@philsmith , thank you so much for the warm welcome. Your comment about the “already busy life” is so on point. I hope so, too! Sometimes I’m sitting for hours and hours while the little one attends therapy. I’m hoping that using some of that time to practice and participate here at the forum pays off. Thanks so much for the encouragement! Much appreciated. Blessings!

[iainism]

Welcome to the community, I hope that you enjoy the journey you have embarked upon! You’ve already made some fantastic contributions too, which is great to see.

[Richard_close2u]

Hello Z, you’ve been around the community a while now but I’m only just getting to your introductory post so - a very warm welcome!
What a story and what a personal touch you bring to it.
I love how you describe the ‘feel’ of music.
Exactly that.
Music feels good.

If it sounds good it is good.
To which we can now add, thanks to you …
If it feels good it is good.

I’m sure Maggie @batwoman would agree on that!
Cheers
Richard