Grace and I went to visit some of ROCK’s students in Riverside on Monday. While lounging in Sarah’s apartment at Cal Baptist, I had a very excruciatingly humbling experience.

I tried to play her roommate’s left-handed acoustic guitar.

I have a newfound understanding and patience towards anyone I teach to play guitar. I couldn’t get the correct fingers on my right hand to move when and where I wanted them to, and even when they were finally placed correctly, I couldn’t get the strings to sound without buzzing! Don’t even ask about chord transitioning. Or barring! Then my left hand had no strumming rhythm, and no control over dynamics. Ugh! It was terrible!

Now I know how many of my students must feel. I apologize to everyone I’ve tried to teach guitar and have been impatient with.

(On a redeeming note, I was able to play the left-handed guitar slightly better in reverse, by still fingering with my left hand and inverting the chord structures in my head. Although some of those inverted fingerings are impossible!)