Sharing the Moment

Author: Clare Yu

I serve at an elementary school every Wednesday to provide arts instruction to students. I went on a Thursday instead one time, and got to meet this student called Toasty. His real name wasn’t Toasty, but the orchestra teacher called him that and he seemed to enjoy his nickname. He needed some help on some basic instrumental techniques, and I was able to work on it with him.

After we worked on his basics, he talked about how he isn’t good enough to be in the honors orchestra. Then he said that even though he is at a different place, he still likes learning and playing the violin, and that he wants to practice more and get better at it so he can join his friends in honors orchestra class. It was inspiring to hear these words from a 5th grader. I was so amazed at his positive and cheerful energy towards the situation. He also knew that I wouldn’t have other lessons with him since I usually serve on Wednesday, and mentioned how much fun he had during the lesson and how he wants to learn more from me. 

It’s moments like this that keep me going. The materials that I taught him weren’t anything complicated. But for him, it meant everything. He was excited for every new note he learned. It reminded of how excited I was when I first started learning violin. I still remember the very first piece I ever learned on the violin. I loved that piece so much that I played it all the time. It means so much that I can be a part of a valuable moment like this with Toasty, and hope to share more with others through ArtistCorps.