Corey's Return

I haven't touched Corey since I went into the hospital last September.  I just haven't had the wherewithal.  Music takes energy and concentration, and I just haven't been there.

Today, I sat down and ran my fingers over Corey's strings.  He was badly out of tune.  I reset his strings, then tried a few easy songs.  My fingers were stiff, and my reflexes were off--I couldn't find chords or runs by touch.  I had to look at what I was doing.  I forgot entire sections of songs I've played for years.  My calluses have faded, so the strings cut at my fingertips.  I was paying for my lack of practice.

But Corey was patient.  He held his tuning and waited while I figured things out.  I had to let my mind go and try to play on auto-pilot; if I thought about it, the song left me.  The less I thought, the easier it became.

Over the course of an hour, more of it came back.  I remembered how the chords went and managed to eke out a few tunes.  When it was over, my hands were sore, but the songs rang in my ears.  I have to make more time to play.  My writing is all but gone--I can't afford to lose my harp as well.

comments