Am reminded of Tommy Emmanuel who takes a screwdriver to the soundboard of a new Maton to rough it up for better percussive scratching sounds 
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… and this will be the only time in my LL that anyone will ever use a comparison to Tommy Emmannuel 
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I have been thinking a lot recently … and I seem to have to have found my “Why guitar?”, “Why music?”, “What am I doing this for?”
It’s a warm feeling. A calm one. It feels right. There is no pressure of any kind.
I have never dreamed or wanted to play songs exactly as they are supposed to be played. I am me and I know my limitations. This is not what keeps me going.
My “why?” is working on music together with other people - thus, by extension working on (probably mainly original) music, I helped to create. In the future, this might mean working on my own music, although this is a much more lonely endeavour.
I remember @DarrellW sharing a link to Keppie’s and Ben’s songwriting channel (https://youtube.com/@htws?feature=shared). I remember how I subscribed and thought I will return to this if there is a need and when I have more time.
Then, at some point this autumn @domi7 started the search for beginner songwriter collaborators. In a move, which seemed foolishly courageous then, I joined the group.
Now, a few weeks into the project, all I can say is: I am at home. This is my “why?”.
In some of their songwriting videos, Keppie encourages to study your heroes, but also says (I’m paraphrasing) be like an anthropologist - it does not matter how much you, personally, dislike certain songs or certain genres, still try to understand what is happening in those songs, aim to understand why they are successful.
Ever since joining JG community and picking up guitar again, my main questions were “why does this work?” , “what skills and knowledge are needed to make this work?”
Now, I’m beginning to understand. I have the mindset of a songwriter.
I don’t have the needed skills yet. Still this is, what informs my desire to learn. As mentioned before, music theory is wonderland for me - I love it, and I’m slowly beginning to understand it better. Yet, this mindset also informs the need to continue acquiring technical skills in the JG grades - just that for me it’s more about learning and then applying skills, rather than wanting to play a song as perfectly as it is played in the original.
I am at home. What a strange thing to say.
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Wonderful question, Nicole, for music and life in general.
I can so relate to your answer, works pretty much for me. Though I do wrestle to release some of the pressures/anxieties that sometimes arise from self doubt and that dark demon, comparison.
For better or worse I am behaviourally a pretty balanced blend of introvert and extrovert. So love to create my own originals, blending my guitar and singing with use of digital instruments (drums, bass, keys etc) in my DAW all on my own. But equally have participated, even played the producer role, in a few collaborations here, which is just as good. Just sometimes tricky from a time perspective.
And I love to play and sing, perform, the covers which are somewhat my own since I am not at that level of ability where I can play just like an original.
Enough about me in yours . . . .
Loved your update, hearing you reflect that you feel “home” is heartwarming.
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I am surely not immune to the comparison demon. Very, very surely not.
But then, does it really matter that I am playing guitar much worse than a great many people, who are active in the community? I am me, I will get better at my own snail’s pace 
- or my technical guitar skills won’t really improve for a long time. I’m fine with that.
Still getting to this point took almost 1,5 years, and I would not have been getting there without becoming aware of what I am good at (yet another very strange thing to say) and becoming aware of what drives me. Working on music together with other people (whether that’s actually physically playing together in a band or similar a long, long time down the line in the future, or working on writing songs together, e.g. here).
I fondly remember your caged bird song (though I still would like to take it darker, much darker… 
)
Hmm … I don’t even have a powerful enough computer to work with at the moment. So all of these AI and DAW-things are utter mysteries for me - for now. I know that will change in the next years. Yesterday, I made a Bandlab account… so I am slowly but surely starting to learn very tiny bits of the recording etc. side of things as well.
Btw … Why don’t you join us over there @DavidP - maybe not for the current song, if you e.g. don’t have time, but for the next (if there will be such)? It would be great to have you in the team 
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We are so alike, Nicole.
I used to talk about my pace as 
pace.
Has taken me just shy of 8 years to reach this point. And there are many who started at the same time or years after me who I feel have progressed further. Of course I am sure they also have put in more effort over their time than I have done.
Thanks for mentioning that song, a lovely compliment. I don’t usually add links to my songs in other peoples’ topics, but if you like a little darker maybe this one will appeal more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw2pNuWNQ4g
Tag me in on the other topic/group. No promises as to how I may contribute. Let’s see.
Yes 
Glad you enjoyed it 
I’ve always been terrible with the “why” question. It is a good question to ask. I’m getting some life-coaching at the moment and that question comes up a lot (not just about guitar)
I do quite a lot on impulse but when you don’t have a strong “why” then there’s a greater possibility that the thing will go nowhere. I’m fairly sure I started playing on a whim. The best I can say right now is that it brings me joy. There’s no long term plan, no desire to get on stage, or write songs just to be able to play along with music I enjoy. Fortunately I don’t feel burdened to play songs exactly as they were written either, as long as I’m in the ball park then I’m happy.
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Joy is a very good answer to the question why, I think
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Hi Nicole, I really enjoyed reading your LL update…we’re all so different and the passion for music which we all share can take so many forms. “Feeling at home”…that’s great and something I can relate to. Keep on the good vibes…and thanks for sharing them!
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@Silvia80 I never even commented nor thanked you. Yet, here I am coming from reading your story about your visit to the luthier.
Maybe that’s what it is. Dare to go, where your heart takes you. Trust that your chosen guitar and music path is yours and that it is okay like that = “feeling at home”
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It has been approx. 24 days that our beginner songwriting group started (oh, yes, we are still at it )
I can’t emphasize enough how important the decision of joining this group has been for my guitar life.
Inevitably, I now want to learn more about music, music theory and I actually want to play guitar. I can’t wait to get home from work and to grab my guitar.
Am I now getting better at guitar any more rapidly? I doubt it. I very heavily doubt it. Still, it does not matter at all. All that matters is that I am happy with what I am doing… and that meant that at the end of last week I finally jumped into the world of AI’s and Reaper & Co.
Oh, I also got GuitarPro 8. So far I have worked with it only for an hour this morning, but I can already say now - I love it. It’s so much better than TuxGuitar
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