Small steps, big results

September 2018

September is the natural time to think about the habits and routines that we’ll all gradually fall into in the course of the coming year. I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the passage of time, as it relates to undertaking seemingly insurmountable goals. Recently, I observed to a friend of mine, that a certain activity seemed like too big of an undertaking, and would take too long. Her response surprised me! She said, “well, Catherine, you might as well do it, because the time is going to pass anyway”!

I’ve thought about that observation quite a bit since then, and I think she was right. It is easy to be intimidated by the size of a goal or task. But have you ever noticed that folks who do a little of something every day, over many years, gain a skill or a strength that really impresses you? The remarkable thing is, you maybe barely even noticed that they were doing it, and they may not have talked about it. But with just one small act of devotion each day, something beautiful grew, over the passage of time.

So it is with practicing an instrument such as the piano. It can be difficult to find those precious minutes each day to practice, but those accumulated years of slow and steady steps in the same direction can yield such great rewards! We can have at our fingertips, the ability to express ourselves creatively, and to move people to joy, or contemplation, or light-heartedness!

I hope each adult who is practicing, or encouraging a young person to practice, will take heart. Though progress may not be perceptible in the rhythm of the day to day, those small steps taken faithfully each day, will yield a full and beautiful gift.