Happy Students, Happy Parents

 

Dear Lois,

 

I don’t know if an email is really the best way to do this, but I feel that it is the easiest and most effective way for me to express my thoughts. It has been twelve years since I have been taking piano lessons from you and it is interesting because even though so much has come and gone through these integral years of my life, my piano lessons have always remained; constant yet progressive. Since I was quite young when I started, I don’t remember much from the early years of taking lessons. As the years went by, even though I went through periods when I wanted to quit, I kept going because I knew that learning music was an extremely important and wonderful skill to have. I do not regret any of the time I spent playing the piano. On the contrary, I deeply appreciate the hours you spent teaching me and the effort you continually make to allow your students to succeed with their musical interests. But, as I am sure you have noticed in the past few months, I just haven’t been personally motivated to practice or play anymore. It has become a cycle of not practicing, not doing well at the lessons, and not being able to play at the concerts. I don’t think that it is fair for you to have to teach a student that isn't willing to put in any effort on their own time. The truth is that lately I have been really focused on my cycling (I recently joined a professional junior cycling team) and my education (I am preparing myself to finish high school and go to college). This doesn’t mean that I am never going to place my fingers on the keys again. I really do hope that one day in the future I will develop a renewed interest in playing the piano because I know what a magical thing it is to do so. But, in the meantime, I think that I need to take a break from lessons for a while. Once again, thank you for the excellent musical education that you have gifted me with for the past twelve years. I will never forget it and if anyone asks for recommendations for a piano teacher, I will send them your way.

 

Sincerely, Emma (student)