Friday, January 27, 2017

No Apologies

I was thinking again today about what I wrote yesterday.  About how during a concert, sometimes things don't go according to the performer's plan.  But as a professional, they roll with it.  Sometimes so smoothly, that a mistake can go unnoticed.  Because the mistake really isn't what matters. And to apologize would put the focus on the wrong thing.

I was thinking about how I have been in similar situations before. Especially when it comes to tuning my guitar onstage during a performance, and having to play through a song when I can tell I never quite got it in tune.  And I'm pretty sure I make faces that make my discomfort in the moment clear.  And then the audience has to feel uncomfortable too.  Then, maybe I apologize after the song is over.  And if I do, really, it just calls attention to what went wrong, and negates what went right. And again, that makes the audience uncomfortable. 

So to add to all that Jonatha Brooke did right during her concert on Wednesday night... She didn't apologize for having a string go out of tune. She just rolled with it.  And figured out the best way to handle her little predicament.  And when the song ended, she graciously accepted our applause.

That's something to remember.  That's a lesson.  There are times to apologize for sure- Like if you've hurt someone.  But there are also times when an apology would just be self-serving.  And so, it's better to just let it go.




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