I found an old Indian bamboo "flute" whistle, and decided to pick it up and try it out.
Keep in mind that I own no whistles and haven't played whistle in months, maybe a year.
I slowly played Oranges and Apples, and realized this whistle was remarkably in tune. Then I went through two rounds of the Ten Penny Bit, rather quickly and with no ornamentation. After I was done playing, I realized beside me, just out of my view, were two young boys, probably 8 and 10 years old. They were watching me the whole time.
After I had finished the last tune, the older one looked up at his dad and said, "DADDY! OH MY GOD! DID YOU HEAR HIM? HE'S SO GOOD!" Overcome with humility and joy, I smiled and nodded my head to the boys and said a quiet, "Thank you" and their dad whisked them off to someplace else.
The look on the little boys' faces is still with me, hours after it happened. The incident somehow struck a cord in my heart, and I feet God reaching down and touching me right at that moment. It was surreal.
And it's made all the more special because my playing, honestly, actually totally sucks in just about every way.
But I feel like that was a sign for me to start playing seriously again. In those little boys who I didn't know were watching me, I saw something tremendously special.
![smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile_144.gif)