learn to play guitar

I remember times in my early youth listening to Uncle Leo strum his guitar to many songs he’d written at our annual family gatherings. Many songs he still plays to this day on such gatherings, although I’ve only familiarized myself with a few. He managed to record a few albums in his time, one of which I’m told hit the charts and became a one hit wonder…but I can never remember which song it was….all I know is it was about 45 years ago when it was out….then again, Uncle Leo was also known to be quite the story teller…especially after a few shots of whiskey. Now that the whiskey has done it’s damage to Leo’s liver, he won’t be around to sing us songs anymore. He has asked that his favorite niece (that would be me) carry on his tradition….and so he is leaving me his guitar when he’s gone. I’ve always been a big fan of all kinds of music. What I think of most when I hear music, isn’t the best concerts I’ve been to, it’s not the brilliant ways that several artists in time have had the ability to reach the lives of many…for me, when I think of music, I think of camp fires, roasting marshmallows, sun burns, and the brief moments when I’ve felt connected to a family I never knew. Music brings me home. I want to learn to play guitar and write songs of my own, so that others can visit me from time to time, and so that I can help others create their own guitar memories. I doubt I’ll ever write anything that will make it to the charts or even be recorded for that matter…and I could care less. But it would be nice to be sitting around a camp fire some day, singing songs to my new family about the adventures of my youth.