Cello

cello
The corner of my office, underneath the wooden mobile.

Today, I did something I’ve been thinking about for a long, long time. I rented a cello.

I have no idea what I’m doing.

Day one of practice wasn’t quite what I expected. I sat with a pencil, re-reading and feeling out instructions that help you shape your hand for a bow. I learned how to tune the strings, getting a feel for the low tones of it.

Three notes. Aside from the open strings, that’s all I played. I spent thirty minutes, fumbling on the fretless neck to reliably find and hit those notes. Deep grooves formed in my fingers.

To play, you put the cello an arm length out, then lean it in toward your body. Swinging the bow over that low C hard and fast made vibrations swim through my chest.

It’s not so bad to be a beginner.


This post is part of Think Kit by SmallBox

Prompt: “Choose Your Own Adventure. Take a pass on the prompts for a day. Write about whatever’s on your mind.