Friday, May 05, 2006

Hidden Blessings of Piano Lessons

It is no secret that being clumsy runs in my family. My mother was very thrilled when she finally made it through a whole trip to New York not falling down (only to trip at the very end in the drug store at the bottom of the Empire State building.)
Well, the apple didn't fall too far from the tree. I am consistently falling, dropping things, breaking things. Glass objects do not seem to last long in my apartment.
Yesterday I was walking up the steps of the CUNY Graduate center when I lost my balance and began to fall. I was a little nervous because I was falling toward my stomach, and people say that can be a danger to the baby. So my only thought was to stop my fall. However, I only had my right hand free. So I placed out my right hand to catch my entire body.
It worked! It was amazing. I held my body up sideways by one hand. There was a sharp shooting pain in my wrist, and I was worried that I could have broken it. However, I could move it right away, and a day later there is still no swelling.
Only one thing could have provided me with a wrist that strong. Years and years of piano lessons. What a great lesson to learn. Have your kids take piano lessons, it can help them avoid nasty falls and save wrists from breaking. Thanks Mom and Dad for your willingness to help me get strong wrists!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wonder if perhaps you are predisposed to have extremely strong wrists. I took piano lessons and my wrists aren't very tough.

I also have to take some responsibility in the fact that there are no glasses in your apartment. I have also been greatly blessed with the gift of dropping things-as you know.

Anonymous said...

Nice save. I must say I myself have had a great deal of technical difficulties in walking and staying vertical this week. Either being tired or just taking finals must have had an effect. So sad. I'm not sure how my wrists rank. My hands are still attached so I think that's a good sign.

Anonymous said...

Piano lessons do not strengthen wrists. In point of fact they do almost the opposite. Piano and other musical instruments require LIMBER movement of the wrist and fingers. Tendons and ligaments and muscles stretch out and allow freer (really a word?) movement.

How do I know this? 12 years of playing the cello in combination with 10 years of using wrist lock techniques on guys two or three times my size. Truly "the bigger they are the harder they fall".

The body builders and athelets would feel more pain and require less effort to be restrained using wrist lock techniques. Musicians and others with loose and limber wrists require more effort.

Think of it like the difference between a dead dried limb and a new live green one. The stiff hardened stick breaks, while the green supple one bends.

Good luck on no more falls and we will see you soon.