Today, I Confess: I Humiliated Myself on Monday...
Life has a way of keeping us humble, right? ๐คท๐ปโโ๏ธ
โThis week on the podcast, I shared some mildly embarrassing stories in an attempt to remind teachers how important it is to say EVERYTHING: even things we believe to be "obvious".
Let the record show, I try to be a good sport. I can laugh at myself.
...but the universe decided I needed a little more practice in that regard this week...
For context, I put over 1500 miles on my vehicle last week, first driving to Iowa to serve as the featured clinician for their state MTA conference (hello to all my new Iowan friends! You are AMAZING!๐๐ป) and then traveling back to NE Ohio with my kids so we could visit my ailing mom.
Iowa was terrific; Ohio was... a lot...
And then, when I finally settled back home in Indiana, I turned 44 (๐) and remembered I'd volunteered to sub as rehearsal pianist for our local theater on Monday night.
Sigh.
I was full of apprehension since I haven't played theater gigs in a long time (and I didn't know the score)... but rehearsal went fine.
Fun story of the night: At one point mid-rehearsal, a teenage boy raised his hand and asked for clarification on a rhythm. He thought the ensemble was singing it incorrectly, and he was right. It was a pretty astute catch, so I pointed at him and silently applauded. He beamed.
โ
As we wrapped up rehearsal, that teen approached me and asked if I remembered him. It took me a second, but I realized he was my student for several years when he was in elementary school. (Surely I get some credit for his attention to rhythmic accuracy, right?) ๐
Here's where it takes a turn: I got *so* excited when I realized he was a former student. I jumped up from the keyboard to hug him and promptly tripped over the amp cord and faceplanted in front of EVERYONE.
It was one of those long, painful falls (the kind that feel like they're happening in slow motion). I knocked over a music stand, sent things hurling across the room... it was awful.
โ
And, of course, it resulted in a lot of attention. None of which I wanted. ๐ซฅ
My poor former student looked horrified. The powers-that-be immediately asked if I wanted to fill out an incident report. EVERYONE wanted to know if I was okay.
(For the record, I am. I'm sporting some gnarly bruises on my knee and my pinky but everything is healing fine...besides my ego).
Why must I be so excited to see former students grown up and doing awesome things?! ๐คฃ
Again, I can usually laugh things off... but this one is proving to be difficult to shake. It has been on constant replay in my mind for days.
...which is exactly why I'm sharing this this story with you today.
As musicians/artists/humans, we will inevitably have moments where we fall flat on our faces in public (literally or figuratively).
As far as I can tell, the best way to move on from these moments is to admit them out loud.
(or - in my case - send an email about it to hundreds of your closest teacher friends) ๐
I hope you'll consider this your reminder that attempting to cover your embarrassments - or pretending they don't matter - will not make them go away. The best you can do is speak them into the light, because that is how they start to lose their power over you.
As Brene Brown reminds us, "Shame hates it when we reach out and tell our story. It hates having words wrapped around it - it can't survive being shared."
So, there you have it: A two-birds/one stone Confession, helping me speak my truth AND reminding you to do the same.
Now it's YOUR turn, friends! Click REPLY and tell me something YOU felt embarrassed by lately. I promise you'll feel better after putting it into words.
(While I am colossally terrible at replying, I truly do read every response).
๐ฅ May we all double-down on showing up as our true, authentic selves. ๐ฅ
(Also: watch your step, friends! Tripping hazards are everywhere.) ๐คฃ