Spring

At some point it will likely cease to be so remarkable to see the progress that occurs in students.  I will come to have faith in it, just as I have come to learn that the body heals itself and that illness is not forever.  But for now I am still a young teacher, maybe, and it is still amazing to me.

A young student that I'm working with seems to be blossoming.  I can see his body differentiating, learning to come into more efficient and centered contact with the instrument.  His focus is generally becoming more sustained, too.  Maybe some things just comes with aging, but I can see the inputs that I and his mother and his primary teacher having been giving.  It is extremely satisfying and encouraging.

Why is it difficult for me to believe in change?  Do most people have a hard time believing that it is possible to change?  Maybe it takes a lot of work to change oneself and much easier to believe that it simply isn't possible.  But my work as a musician, as a martial artist, and most definitely my work as a teacher have led me to believe that this simply isn't true.  Maybe some things are fundamental, maybe something cannot be changed.  But maybe this, too, is not true.

What is fundamental about oneself?  What is unchangeable?  Might there be a way to nudge it, even the slightest bit?  I never thought I'd be able to play the Dvorak cello concerto.  But somehow, now, I can.