Many people in this world tend to hit a wall at a certain place in their life. For some people this wall could be made up of hard work, and getting over this wall is sometimes a struggle. But there are also some people who are able to climb up and over the wall with ease. I had an exhilarating moment in my life that helped me get over that wall to work hard for something.

At the time of around Halloween last year I was in the 8th grade at my school. I was only 13 at the time but I already knew what I wanted to do in my life, music. I was so devoted to music that when I went home I was always thinking about what new song I would learn or what I wanted to listen to. I’ve always played many instruments starting with piano, guitar, and drums. I picked up piano so I could read basic music and that drove me into guitar. A little while after I started guitar my friend said that he didn’t need his drum kit anymore and passed it down to me.

I was in the 8th grade and I always thought being in a band would be one of the best things in the world. Around that time I was friends with an older student named Dan. On Halloween of 2016 I saw Dan in my school’s band room. He was playing guitar with a drummer so I asked them if they needed a bass player. Now I didn’t play bass, which made it pretty challenging for me. We jammed and afterward I got Dan’s number. We talked for a bit and we decided that we could do something great with our musical talent and we formed our first band.

I went home that day and was as happy as a kid on Christmas for it had always been a dream of mine to be in a band. Not only was I in a band now, but I thought it was amazing how they let me play with them despite my age difference. Dan texted me later that night saying he had 14 songs already written that we could use on an upcoming album. I said, “Okay that sounds good” and went to bed with a lot of adrenaline. The next day he gave me the demo tape with all 14 songs on them. I went home and every day I practiced, and practiced the next day, and the next. I put in every second of my free time just to sit down and play, I practiced till my hands were bleeding some days. Each day I put so much effort into learning them, I would play the demo tapes and just play along for a few hours each night. Dan and I also rehearsed the songs after school every other day, but I was able to master all the songs and understand them very well.

In a few months we decided we were ready for the studio. We went and banged out an album over the course of two days and we were as proud as ever. This album could not have been produced without the hard work that me and Dan put in each day. Still to this day Dan and I are playing adrenaline filled shows and we’re having the time of our lives. Being on stage is like finally looking over the tree-line when you reach the top of a mountain, absolutely breathtaking.

Whenever I look back on the accomplishments and hard work I put into my band I always try to relate it to my everyday life. Every day I work hard, I play three sports all year and get home pretty late which is when I have to do my homework. Sometimes getting all my homework done is not easy so late at night, but I know I have to do it. I am also in my school band, Jazz band, and now I have my own personal band; however, these are things I decide to do so I am doing them willingly. Working hard has become almost a second hand nature for me in my everyday lives. Working hard will always get you the results you’re looking for in life, I still believe this personal belief today and it will always mean a lot to me.