Renshu

Renshu - in Japanese, means to practice.   And in taiko drumming, there is a piece called Renshu which is a drill to practice the basic elements of taiko drumming to help the drummer drum better.

Personally, I hated that drill.   It seemed like we would go over it, and over it and over it some more.  But it was necessary.  And let's be honest.  As a group, we would not be playing another piece until we got that drill right!

But sadly, I gave up the choice to drum as I moved and decided to have kids.  The move was a far drive away from where we would drum and it wouldn't be fair to my family to be away from them that many times per week and for that many hours each time.

I missed it so much.  I've played different musical instruments before but I connected with this one the most.  I think the beauty was being able to drum with other drummers that felt the same way...and when we all played our part correctly, it wasn't just drums making noise, rather, we had our own symphony.  It was really great.  And yes, of course, I missed the people.  Really awesome and diverse group that enjoyed drumming as much as I did.  Watching them was also awe inspiring too.  This might have been so easy for someone else to give up, but not for me.

But fast forward 8 years to today...I went back to taiko drumming!  YES!  Though I will not be a performing member like I was last time, it's an opportunity to drum and be part of everything that I loved before.  I can go every Sunday or choose which Sundays I want.

Today I drummed with a small number of folks, 2 which I'd never met before.  And right away, we hit it off because of our common love for taiko.  They were awesome.

I was nervous about today because it had been so long since I picked my my bachi (drum sticks for the taiko drums).  I didn't think I could remember a thing.

But all that time drilling Renshu and all those other songs obviously did make a difference.  It really was like riding a bike.  A little rusty at first but within a couple of minutes, I was back drumming like it was 8 years ago.

Pretty dang happy today.