Mandolin Strum

It was a dark, stormy evening. The humidity swaddled us in its blanket, and the Spanish moss whipped back and forth in the pounding rain. A family from church invited us over for dinner, and after we ate, we sat around enjoying the rain in their cozy living room, playing board games with the sister missionaries who dropped by, and listening to this amazing  family play bluegrass on the mandolin, banjo, and guitar. It was a lovely Southern night.

One of the things I love about bluegrass music is that you can't feel too sad when you hear a banjo and mandolin. They have such a bright sound. I told this amazing family that I'd always wanted to learn the mandolin and banjo. Their daughter jumped up and came back in the room with a black case. She pulled out a practice mandolin and showed me some cords. Then she sent it home with me.

It's been fun learning a new instrument. Sometimes Chris accompanies me on the guitar and we almost sound good. I only know how to strum a few basic notes and pick out a few simple tunes, but it's a start. And Ashley asked if I'd teach her what I know, too. So every few days, she picks it up and practices the three notes she knows.

Maybe someday (after learning a bunch of new instruments...) our family will play like this: