A Memory from a Korean-American Childhood – Piano Lessons
When I was about 10 years old, my parents started me on piano lessons. Every Sunday morning (that was the only day they could drive me) to have my lesson.
And if you are of Korean-American heritage, then I’m sure you were also subjected to taking piano lessons on the weekends instead of doing normal fun things other kids get to do.
Of course there are non-Korean-American kids who were and are shuffled to piano lessons weekly. However, piano lessons for Asian kids just seem to be an integral part of childhood. Just as much as Saturday morning cartoons (at least they were when I was growing up) or leaving vegetables on the plate! Music lessons were mandatory!
And I loathed it! I hated having to do more homework on top of regular schoolwork! Getting up early every Sunday morning to go to a lesson where I would try to fake that I practiced, but only showed my incompetence was not fun, to say the least! And don’t even get me started on recitals!
It doesn’t necessarily had to have been piano either.
It could’ve been guitar or violin. But these three were the prevalent choices.
Finally, after about two years of not ever practicing and fighting tooth and nail about having to go to these lessons, my parents relented….So they decided to switch me to guitar. That lasted about a month before we quit that as well.
However, many years later as an adult, I lamented having quit my piano lessons. I regret resisting my parents about it. But it’s hard when you’re a kid to realize that music lessons will help you appreciate music on a deeper level, make you a more well-rounded person, and help you in a myriad of random ways that you can’t even predict!
I think about these things as my kid gets older. I wonder how I’ll explain all that. And what instruments I should introduce to him and whether I should force him to continue lessons even after it’s obvious he hates it, which he almost definitely will because he’s my kid. And I can’t help but hold on to the piano that my parents bought for my sister and me, which is now collecting dust in the corner of our home, in the hopes that he’ll play it one day.
That’s why we have kids, right? So that we can live vicariously through them?
I used to think that way until I read a quote, that I can’t fully recall anymore. But the gist was that you shouldn’t push your dreams on your kids. You should live your dreams out yourself.
So even though I would like my son to take to the piano, I won’t push it on him. I’ll just learn to play it myself! And hopefully, he will see how much I’m enjoying it and will try it as well!