Do you have any of those goals that you set for yourself that seem to stick around for years but you never really do anything to make them happen? Well I do! One of them for me was to learn how to play the violin. I had sort of tried to play when I was younger and then as an adult, have fallen in love with the instrument many times over. I talked about it a lot but never moved on it.
This all changed on my birthday this year. Dan decided to send me on a scavenger hunt all over the city that led back to his gift: a beautiful Mendini violin! I couldn’t believe it!
The other side of this amazing gift was that it took away all of excuses as to why I wasn’t doing anything to reach my goal of taking lessons. I had to face my fears and jump back in after so many years. Let me tell you how this played out.
Before I found my instructor, I spent some time messing around with my violin. I tried practicing a few songs that I 
remembered from my elementary school years and was impressed with what I remembered. Dan was curious how well he could play so I even taught him a few basics. While my confidence was up, I started my violin lessons.
This was my first mistake. I met with the instructor I chose for my first lesson and it because clear very quickly that I did not know crap about playing this instrument. I had to start on the basics, which was embarrassing for me. I stuck with it anyway and thought I would fly through the basics anyway so it was only temporary.
Guess what. I was wrong again! I struggled with the basics. I was so disappointed with myself. The other part that I did not expect was that what I was hearing feedback on was for things that I had no idea how to change.
Here was one conversation we had in a lesson. Instructor: “Imagine there is a scale from 1-10 for tension. When you’re playing the violin, you want your entire body to be a 1, no more than a 2. Right now, you’re at about a 9.” What?! I had no idea that part of learning to play to violin for me was learning how to relax my body. It seems easy but I can promise you, it has not been for me!
It was such a humbling experience. I learned quickly that I was starting at zero and if I wanted to play, I had to accept that and put in the work to move forward. It was a strange feeling. I had tried many new things before but most skills that I have built over the year started on at least of a foundation of another skill that I had. This was the first time I was truly a novice.
I realized at this point that every time we make the decision to try something new, we are a rookie. Everyone who has ever achieved anything started at this same spot. They just put in the time and practice to grow over time, and I could do the same. 
Something changed as I have grown up. Starting over has become more and more difficult. I am grateful for realizing this because it is not something that I would like to continue. I love learning new things and it is important that I am not intimidated by the idea that I am a beginner.
I am happy to say that I am sticking with the violin. But why I am sharing all of this? The point of this is to say that don’t ever not start something because you think you’re “too old” or it’s “too late” or you’re too embarrassed to start. At the end of the day, you’re the only one suffering from that decision. It’s worth giving it a try. Everyone starts as a beginner. Have the courage to start – I promise it is worth it.