When I was in grade school, my father worked three jobs running different businesses in order to keep our family moving. We owned a convenience store, an oil delivery business, and a ski shop. This led to my father working long hours, and me spending a lot of time at friends houses (let's face it, I was 14 and could find trouble like a hog finds truffles, trust me)

My first day of freshman year I met Tanner . He knew he was going to be my friend from the minute he saw me (he ... actually proclaimed this to his parents, ask Kelly ) wearing my sister's pink camo pants and my hair still a slight hue of bluish green from her dying it that summer (everyone needs to let their sister dye their hair a crazy color at least once in their life, I believe). Regardless, I ended up spending a lot of time with the Smith family. Camden and Cooper were in 8th grade, and Marley was even younger, in 6th. In that time, Tanner's love of music started to rub off. I played one of his two dozen or so guitars, often just strumming along with the boys attempting to encompass what I believed to be rhythm (Camden plays drums, Cooper bass). The first song we learned (with me) was Roxanne by The Police. We would play it for hours, often to Marleys disapproval, since her bedroom was blocked by our band equipment, instruments, and since the room had no windows, strobe lights (it made us sound better, I promise)..

It was Tanner who found a spare string peg for this Washburn I still have. I believe I lost it at school or his house during my third or fourth year, but he happened to have a spare. I've never found the need to replace it, since it does it's job just fine.

I picked up this guitar today for the first time in nearly ten years. He would often ask me if I made time to practice in recent years, and I've always had a good excuse why I haven't. Tuning this acoustic guitar, stretching my fingers, and remembering my scales and chords tonight brought a sense or calming over me which I've desperately needed in the past few days. I thank my friend for always fostering my own love for music. It was Tanner taking lessons at Mr Mills music shop in Augusta which really got me interested in learning, and his persistence which fueled it. Mother of the Groom Dresses for Fall 2020

Funny, the only song i can remember fully is Wish you were here by Pink Floyd.