Playing the Piano
Rishave Verma
Failure is only postponed success, as long as courage coaches ambition.
(Herbert Kaufman)
Beethoven is considered the most famous, influential and one of the greatest composer and pianist of all time. He was a crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western Art music. Once after his performance, a lady sitting in the first row, who was totally in awe of the enthralling music exclaimed “Oh!!How magical are those notes pouring out of your piano. I wish I could play that instrument just like you do.” Beethoven turned to her and said “My dear lady, it’s no magic. Do I look like a magician to you? Buy a piano today itself, and keep playing it for 6 hrs, everyday, for the next 40 years. You will be as good as me.”
Though it might appear too clichéd to emphasize the importance of practice over here, but believe me there is one more aspect of practice which is even more important. It’s practicing with Faith. A Faith in our abilities. We like it or not, but the eternal truth is we can’t be good enough, even in our minutest of pursuits, without enough practice with faith.
Coming to our preparations, the same principles apply. We can only expect mediocrity if we don’t practice with faith. It’s up to us to decide what we expect of ourselves. Yesterday, the result of Insights offline classes was announced. To those selected few, our best wishes. To those who couldn’t make it, don’t get disheartened and keep practicing with a faith, that you will write better answers in the coming days. And to everybody, let’s not allow mediocrity to creep in our lives.
The only way we grow is by practicing with faith. Such a practice means we are willing to step into abyss without any obvious security, but a guarantee of success. Even the simple act of walking requires us to be out of balance. When we shift our weight from one foot to another, there is a tiny in-between moment when we are not secure of the old footing or the new. Let us accept this insecurity as an opportunity for almighty to prove his mighty presence. Because along with that, we are being offered a guarantee to succeed. And I’ll ask “Today, Have You Played Your Piano With Faith?”
Today’s Prayer:
“Help me walk past my failures, for I have not given up. I can still do a thing or two”.
