What was a defining moment for you? I remember one when I was in high school. By that time I had been playing guitar for a while, but the time had come for me to spend my very hard-earned money on the guitar that would be my first real guitar. The choice was between a slick-white Fender Mustang electric guitar which I felt sure could lead me to a meteoric career in rock and roll or a beautiful straight acoustic Yamaha 350 guitar, taking me in a completely different direction – toward folk, folk-rock, and sacred music. I doubt Robert Frost ever played guitar, but I think he knew the kind of dilemma I faced that day in Schroeder’s Music Store in Savannah, Georgia when he wrote:

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

With the guidance of my brother John and using every dollar I had earned from doing yard-work at a dollar an hour, I purchased the Yamaha. It was a decision that has shaped much of my life since. I began playing regularly in church, playing for friends, and playing for every gathering where an acoustic guitar could find a space. I loved it, and I loved that guitar.

Although I never regretted the decision I made that day, I did see rock and roll bands spring up all around me, each experiencing varying degrees of success and tragedy. And I wondered, would I have been successful in that field? Would I have loved it as much? Would I still be playing today? I suspect not. But every now and then in a pawn shop or in an old catalog I’ll see a white Fender Mustang electric guitar, and for a moment – just a moment – I’ll still wonder.

Tell us of your difficult and defining decision. How did that work out for you? Click on the title of this post and share.

PS: Today Sound Traveler will be playing at the Space Coast State Fair in Cocoa, FL from 4:30 – 6:00 PM. Come see us if you can! I’ll be playing an acoustic-electric Guild guitar. Tomorrow we head to St. Pete to teach at The Sunshine State Acoustic Music Camp.

3 Comments to “SongTravelin’: 11.11.10 — That Old Guitar and a Decision That Still Makes a Difference”

• November 11, 2010 at 10:00 am
  Jacques says:

  Life is full of decisions and, in a sense, each one is defining. We are each a product of the decisions that we and/or others have made. I think you made the one that was right for you.
• November 12, 2010 at 9:09 am
  Kay says:

  I can’t tell you how thankful I am you walked out with that Yamaha.
• November 15, 2010 at 9:35 am
  admin says:

  Thanks, Kay. It has been a gift to me that has allowed me to give to others.