I am back on the rehabilitation treadmill.
My tower handling is so poor that the bell rings me in any but the easiest of towers with the shortest of draughts, and it is pointless to try and attempt methods when I cannot control my bell well enough to strike in the correct place. Knowing exactly where you want to be, but being unable to get there is frustrating and sounds nasty and I am fed up with battling. It is therefore back to square one for the third time since lock-down for me and if anyone was handing out certificates for perseverance then I should be first in line, along with my very patient teacher
Last week I put my deficit to some use in that I assisted as my teacher taught a newbie. I learned alongside an Absolute Beginner – the not-so-glamorous assistant if you like – who demonstrated what was required but also broke down her own handling style and tried to rebuild it from the bottom up. At least I did not feel that I was demanding yet more time, because I acknowledge that I have had more than my fair share.
On the way to the tower it felt like I was driving to face a firing squad. However I thought about it, all I could see were the problems and my faults. Despite telling myself that I would never be so harsh on someone else and what is the worst that can happen, I could not silence the negative voice in my head. It is still a puzzle to me - where does it come from? Why does it shout so loudly at me in this particular tower? How can I shut it up?
In the event, the experience was very useful. Even the complete newbie tackling her very first lesson on a Real Bell could see that my attempt was nothing like my teacher's. In an effort to set a good example so as not to start someone else off all wrong, I tried and tried to eliminate my most obvious bad habits and was forced to acknowledge the things that I can execute successfully. Not every move is wrong. I do have some skill although I have lost sight of it. There was an improvement and after 35 minutes my style looked more like my teacher's than it did before.
So on I battle and it is a battle. I now feel that I can ring one particular bell successfully as long as there is no audience, no need to keep in time and no expectation to perform. Now I need to conquer all the bells in the tower before attempting to ring with others because I suspect that as soon as I am required to slot into an allotted place, all bets might be off again.
This may be a long haul but it could be an enjoyable one as long as sufficient newbies come forward to keep me at it. If anyone needs a not-so-glamorous assistant then I am available most days for demonstration purposes. I reckon another 12 hours and I might be fixed.
And the stars? That was what was playing on the car radio as my teacher and I parked alongside each other:
....We've got to all stick together
Good friends, there for each other
Never ever forget that
I've got you and you've got me, so
Reach for the stars
Climb every mountain higher
Reach for the stars
Follow your heart's desire
Reach for the stars
And when that rainbow's shining over you
That's when your dreams will all come true,,,,
Thank you Nikki for standing by me (yet again).
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