Simple Things

The older I get, the more the simple things impress me.
When I first started playing bass guitar as a teenager, I met a guy who could play circles around me. He told me something I did not understand until much later: "The bass is easy to play, but hard to get good at."
See, anybody can learn to play the bass. So no one is impressed when you say, "I'm a bass player." Sure, so is everyone else. " You have a guitar and a drum. All you need to make a band is a bass player. Toby's little brother is there...yea, he'll do. That's sort of how I got started in music.
"You ever played bass before?"
"No, but I think I can do it."
"Okay. You can play with us on a trial basis."
Voila! I'm a 'bassist'.
But if anyone can do it, it means you have to really step it up to be impressive.
Kind of like the slam dunk contest in the NBA. Now, how many NBA players can't slam dunk?
So, to win the title, you have to do something supernaturally difficult. As in, triple back-flip slam dunk over your head while drinking a glass of iced tea....
But having the slam dunk contest winner on your team has nothing to do with winning championships. And I was in trouble with band leaders for years for playing way too "over-the-top" on bass. It did not mean we sounded good, it just meant that all you noticed was the bass. (But is that so bad?? Anyway...)
I want to be a great husband and father more than I want to have an awesome career. That is a new priority for me. I mean, I was a great dad and all, but, anybody can be a dad....
But it takes persistent attention to the everyday things to win at home, to be the best dad, husband, friend....And I know a lot of "successful" people who have unenviable home lives.
There is not a lot of market demand for the behind-the-scenes kind of success. But when you see it, you realize that it is the only kind that lasts.
Maybe I should just get really good at the perfect lay-up.