Short story: On staying on the path

 On staying on the path. (Copyright of Kris Rodgers)

Excuse the Hollywood-esqueness of this story.  But I can tell you, hand on heart that it is 100% true.  I swear on my Musicmans (for those of you reading this without a knowledge of Bass guitars, a musicman is a make of Bass, and my pride and joy!) life.

Some time ago, in the late summer, I was going for one of my wanders.  I normally wander quite a bit, taking my bass with me, and if there is no-one around, i'll have a little jam, and maybe write a little song or riff if i'm lucky.  I normally do this out in the sticks, because it's much more inspirational out there, and is so much better to play music in.

I'd gone quite far on this occasion, and it started to get a bit dark.  I had a good idea what direction I needed to head off in to get to where I wanted to end back up.  Instead of turning around, and going back the way I had come, I found a fork in the path, and took another track that headed back in the direction I wanted to go.

As it got darker and darker, I noticed that there was a wood I had to go through to get to the other side of the path.  Now, I'm the first to admit that my imagination can still get the better of me (even at 33) on certain ocassions.

(Those ocassions normally being me, walking through a dark woods with beasties and spooks that probably don't exist, but defiantly exist inside my stupid head whilst I am doing so.)

I had gone some distance at this point, and turning round, to go back the way I came would certainly double my journey time.  It was the safe option, but not the exciting one, and one that would take quite a while.  I stood there for a short while, looking behind and forwards, before I made my decision to carry on.

I grit my teeth, held my bass like a battle axe, and began to walk through the dark woods...

Now, I can't say that that decision was a comfortable one for me.  If i'm honest.  I couldn't see the path, and it just got darker and darker as I walked on.  I felt spiderwebs on my face.  I heard things.  I saw things.  (Well, at least I think I saw and heard things.  The reality is probably very different.)  The path was muddy.  The only way I knew I was going in the right direction was by attentively staring at a slight bit of light in the far-off distance.  This...became my mantra.

The light got closer and closer, step by step, and when I actually saw the exit hole of the woods, I ran.  I ran like a six year old runs up the stairs when it's dark, and they think something might be behind them.  It had that same panic.  I ran like a girl.  I ran for my life.

Unfortunately, in my panic, I didn't run very well, and fell over quite a few times.  Me being on the floor, just added to my panic, and I let out a little scream as I scrambled to my feet again.  As far as was concerned, the non-monsters and ghosts were right over me.  And they had big teeth.  I kicked out at empty space, and swore at nothing.  Got to my feet, and moved quickly on to the exit...

...and what I saw when I got there was mind-blowing...

I came out onto the top of a large hill that looked over a Castle.  Above that was the biggest orange moon I have ever seen in my life.  It was spectacular. I just stood there and watched.

It was so spectacular that I hadn't realised I was covered head to toe in mud and cow shit.

And here comes the Hollywood and hard to believe part.  At that point, a massive firework display started at the castle.  I sat down on the floor, and watched the Moon, castle and fireworks.  I picked up my plop stained bass, and started playing.  I then put it back down again because it was too cold.  I just sat and watched.  It was amazing.

Now, what does this have to do with bass playing you may ask?  Well, apart from not recommending dropping your bass in cowpats, quite a bit!

To get to where we want to be, we need a goal of some sort.  Like my light at the end of the wood, you need to have it firmly in your head.  Now, regarding bass playing, that could be to learn a new technique, gain more strength, learn more scales, find a band, do a gig, become a millionaire rockstar, or whatever.  The goal, is your own personal goal, and only you can, and should choose it.

And this doesn't only relate to bass playing.  It can be anything in life.

The journey I set myself was a difficult one.  I couldn't see the light at the end of the woods when I entered it.  I had to persevere a bit before it appeared.  Sometimes in life, we have an idea where the goal is, but we can't see it yet, so we have to go on.  We have to move forward.  We have to try.

Now, the easy option would have been to give up, turn around and go back onto the original path I came from.  That was the easy option.  To give up.  But I had to muster enough mental strength to carry on.  Even though I was scared to death (I really was), and had no idea where I needed to be, I knew the exit was in that general direction.  And when I finally saw it, I headed to it.  When I fell over, I got up and carried on.  I never stopped.  If I had done, the ghosts would have got me.

When you start your journey with your bass, or whatever in life, you will come across a metaphoric wood like mine.  You won't know where you're going.  You'll be confused, and a bit lost.  The easiest thing to do would be to give it up, turn around, and go for the easy option.  The known path, rather than the un-known.  The track most walked.

Also on this path will be lots of mental monsters that you will find.  Those monsters that whisper to you in the dark "give up" "You can't do this"  "You will fail", but you have to shut those monsters up, and keep on keeping on...

...because Sometimes in life, we make monsters in our head that don't exist.  Our own personal monsters, that feel very real.

But trust me when I say this.  You'll appreciate the goal so much more if you have to fight for it.  The castle, fireworks and moon were proof of this for me.  The journey may seem too hard, and you will really want to give up.  It's at these times the monsters will start their whispering.  Ignore them.  Move on.  You'll feel lost, maybe a bit lonely, but move on.

It was lucky I had my bass on me, because it made me link this story with the journey we take when we take up an instrument, or anything worth achieving in life. That is why I am sitting here in the cold, watching the Moon, Castle and Fireworks whilst frantically writing it down.  The path is behind me.  This is spectacular.

Stick with it and fight for it.  Trust me.  It'll be worth it if you do.

*Just an added footnote.  As I was walking back down the hill to my car, I fell over, rolled most of the way down and hurt my knee a bit.  I have no idea what this means.