There are those days when nothing seems to go right. We all have days like that. For me it may involve making mistakes while playing "Mary Had a Little Lamb" for a child or sticking to my routine and forgetting about a schedule change. Or the classic "tripping over my own shadow". The rest of my days are usually a mixture of good and bad. I'm guessing you and I are much alike in this regard, although the details may vary.
Imagine my delight then when I had a day where things went right pretty much all day. I played at a wedding ceremony and reception that was near the Michigan and Indiana border. A three hour drive from my place to theirs. I found myself at the Fernwood Botanical Garden on a beautiful sunny day. If you're going to plan an outdoor wedding this is the place and the weather you would custom order.
When Michael and Cat booked me they had a few songs in mind to be played. So I set out to learn several new pop songs. I don't listen to pop music as a rule, so every song was new to me. Each had to be arranged for solo guitar and practiced to a reasonable standard. I worry about this kind of stuff. Taking a song that is written and arranged for several voices, rock band, and strings or horns and distilling into something that can be played on an acoustic guitar is tricky business. What if they hate it?
During the event I noticed that the guitar and PA were sounding awesome together. It was a moment when I could appreciate my own hard work and years of experience. I don't typically like the way I play so this was a novel notion. Several times the guests came up to compliment me. The comments made me feel more comfortable and relaxed which, in turn, helped me to play even better.
We wrapped things up three and a half hours later. I had only taken one short break so I was pretty tired, but I was somewhat sorry to see it end too. As I was packing my few things the couple came up to me and were far more complimentary than I'm used to. I won't say my worrying was for naught because it motivated me to practice like crazy. But I was able to put my concerns to rest.
It's funnier to tell stories of things that go wrong and plans that go sideways. But sometimes you need to acknowledge the moments when everything goes right. If rainy days help us appreciate the sunny ones, then happy days help temper the gloomy ones.