My arm hurts. A lot. I have injuries and lots of scar tissue. And every fiber is my greatest strength my greatest advantage.

Well, I think I have finally broken through a barrier. After 36 years of playing I can feel my left arm doing things that I have always wanted it to do. To be in the more correct place to be more relaxed and more in control with less tension. We are never done, we never cross the finish line, there is always something to improve. But there should also be milestones, there should be big milestones, big moments of accomplishment where you really feel like you have move the needle forward in your playing. That is happening for me right now, at age 47 no doubt. The playing away from the cello is fading, and I have not been such a good steward of late of writing down my experience of improvement. My tension, my injuries, they are my greatest weapon and advantage in this epic adventure to learn how to get better and share it with others. The pinching down of my left side, the tensing up of my left side neck muscles and ultimately my ears, yes you can tense up your physical out ear, is all to do with listening, the lack of, the lack of proper focus, or proper perspective about what is actually happening. That is changing, it is changing for the better every day.

I don’t chew as much as I used to. That energy is going into the cello. More on that later.

Clay