The last waning days of summer are here and slowly I count down to autumn's new beginning of 2015. This has been a year of many new discoveries and during these times I admit my practice time has been less than desirable. The "summer doldrums" I blogged about a few weeks back have finally begun to disappear and schedules are now loosening up to allow more freedom and time to get back into a routine.
Cooler temperatures and some wonderful pushes from loved ones help me in tremendous ways to get centered and back on the right path. This being said, today is one I hope is the new beginning to daily practice and progression in my shakuhachi studies. If I had been diligent these last few years and really progressed well, think of the advancement I would have made. Alas, it was not to be and I find myself still in the dungeons of beginner and far less accomplished than I should be. When I ponder why I have NOT progressed in much more scholastic ways, it usually comes down to devoting the time that should be in practice and study to other interests and parts of my life. Isn't it how we all are to some degree? Too much going on.
Therefore, from this day on till the end of the year, my goal is to practice a minimum of a half hour every day and to study the music, history, culture and extras about my beloved instrument for a half hour. That is an hour a day on this. Can it be done?
Um, yes, of course. Though getting sidetracked is my problem. So I shall use my dry erase board and a calendar to chart my progress. Another goal is to have three songs memorized by years end. I was able to master one song this year. One. That's pathetic and pitiful. Yet that time is past and not much can be done about it but move on and make better use of my time. Something else has to be dropped from my list of interests in order to accommodate the practice and study of the shakuhachi. Languages are the first to go, so Welsh and German are now on the far back burners of this player's stove as are any study of ancestry and genealogy. I'll still keep to my Buddhist philosophy details and books as well as meditation and running/cycling. The new photography business I have just started will of course be moving ahead so this will leave little time to add anything new. Looks like my remaining months of this year are now spoken for and filled. Onward and upward. ^^^^^^^^^^^
