The Lesson of the Air Guitar

Sadly, my son does not seem to have inherited my ‘Air Guitar’ gene.

 

Last Saturday night Ben and I got to go to an amazing concert.  Fireflight plays wonderfully loud, obnoxious, melodic metal with a Christian theme.  If you stop at our house nearly any evening you’ll hear it flowing from our speakers.  The band is on their national tour and somehow ended up playing in Kasson (in between concerts in Indiana and Michigan)!

From the moment we walked in the door I knew it would be a good night.  The wall of speakers next to the stage promised to rattle my eardrums.  The first band was OK.  The next band was halfway decent.  Then came Ashes Remain with their loud, growly sound (and drummer who looked either like the caveman on Geico commercials…or a sasquatch – I’ve never seen so much hair).  Ben and I liked them enough to buy their CD!   Each warm-up band tried (with varied success) to get the crowd involved.  Ben and I clapped along a bit…but we didn’t know the songs at all.  It’s hard to get into the music when it’s not familiar.

When Fireflight took the stage everything changed.  The smoke and light show ramped up.  The sound got mixed more clearly.  The crowd roared.  This is what we’d come for!  As the opening guitar riffs blazed, I assumed the proper ‘air guitar’ position and played along.  I hit every note!  I soon had a tap on my shoulder and a voice trying to shout above the music, “Dad, what is THAT?”  Apparently Ben hasn’t seen an air guitar being played before!  He shook his head in disbelief.  As the concert rolled along both Ben and I sang loud and proud…clapped our hands…waved our arms…shouted our approval.

There was a day when I would have shied away from any of that, afraid that I might ‘look stupid.’  I know full well that I’m an awkward guy.  I’ve never had ‘smooth moves.’  My ability to dance can be compared to Frankenstein trying to keep from drowning.  I’ve finally gotten to the point in life where I don’t care (it’s only taken me 41 years!).  This is how God made me, so why be embarrassed by it? 

It’s amazing how much my fear of ‘what others will think’ has influenced my actions over the years.  I haven’t allowed myself to freely enjoy myself.   As Fireflight rocked on I let my body join in the celebration…even (to my son’s dismay) throwing down an air guitar riff when it felt right!

I am who God created me to be.  Why be embarrassed by that?