Post 6 of 31 for May 2017!
Today's simple post is about a simple concept that for many, many flutists feels anything BUT simple!
Patience.
It's amazing to me how often a little extra patience can help me or my students accomplish what seemed impossible only moments before.
I'm also continuously blown away by how much even the youngest or "lowest level" students can accomplish if they dig down deep inside, breathe in a meaningful way, and get ready to find out what they can really do if they give themselves the chance.
The picture at the top of this post is of "Patience the Turtle," a cute little turtle ring I found at a thrift store years ago. I went through a phase where I had all my students (young or old, boy or girl) wear the ring when patience was what they needed to accomplish the next step.
I gave the ring to a special student who really needed it one day, but now I have a different turtle in my music room at home and a 3-minute hourglass in my office at UTA. It's always worth it to use whatever patience prop can facilitate a meaningful moment in a lesson or practice session!
Clearly, the idea for Patience the Turtle refers to the fable of The Tortoise and the Hare. Slow and steady really does win the race, and I hope the minute or two you spent reading this post today will hit the refresh button on this lesson in your mind.
Next time you're practicing or teaching and need a fresh infusion of patience, take a moment and watch the video below or read the parable below to yourself or to your student!
Happy Practicing!
Terri Sànchez
The Tortoise and the Hare
an Aesop Fable
an Aesop Fable
One day a hare was bragging about how fast he could run. He bragged and bragged and even laughed at the tortoise, who was so slow. The tortoise stretched out his long neck and challenged the hare to a race, which, of course, made the hare laugh.
"My, my, what a joke!" thought the hare.
"A race, indeed, a race. Oh! what fun! My, my! a race, of course, Mr. Tortoise, we shall race!" said the hare.
The forest animals met and mapped out the course. The race begun, and the hare, being such a swift runner, soon left the tortoise far behind. About halfway through the course, it occurred to the hare that he had plenty of time to beat the slow trodden tortoise.
"Oh, my!" thought the hare, "I have plenty of time to play in the meadow here."
And so he did.
After the hare finished playing, he decided that he had time to take a little nap.
"I have plenty of time to beat that tortoise," he thought. And he cuddle up against a tree and dozed.
The tortoise, in the meantime, continued to plod on, albeit, it ever so slowly. He never stopped, but took one good step after another.
The hare finally woke from his nap. "Time to get going," he thought. And off he went faster than he had ever run before! He dashed as quickly as anyone ever could up to the finish line, where he met the tortoise, who was patiently awaiting his arrival.
Slow and steady wins the race.
