Richard Thompson was describing how he tries to keep his technique and musical imagination fresh, and repeated a saying I’ve never heard before:  You should copy everyone except yourself.

And I was recently told that I wasn’t catching on to something fast enough, and even though it hurt and I think that person was wrong – it’s completely true that I get the same things wrong over and over and over again.  Even though I am decently smart, I am not a very fast learner.

I can’t help it.  Every time I pick up my instrument – a 3 lb. black box with glass on one side, light sensitive media on the other and a tiny hole in between – the same question clenches my diaphragm and squeezes my eyes almost shut.  The question is something like, “If it isn’t beautiful, what did I do wrong?”