Overcoming Fear — A First Gig, a Violin, and a Black Tourmaline Crystal | The Quiet Hearth

Today I played my very first gig! This is definitely a black tourmaline day!

About 18 months ago I decided I wanted to play a musical instrument. I have always been drawn to the violin. In fact I had started playing it in school when I was around 10 years old, but ended up having to give up or rather forced to give up, but that’s a story for another day. After 40 odd years the pull to play it was still there, so I thought I had better do something about it.

I purchased a cheap violin from Ebay, and was thrilled when it arrived. I had also decided that I was going to teach myself to play, after all having a teacher last time and been a disaster so I turned to You Tube as my teacher.

It was hard, and screechy at first but I persevered, I even upgraded my violin to a not so cheap one after 6 months and continued to practice. After 12 months I decided I would seek out a teacher to help iron out any bad habits before they formed. Eventually, I came across a lovely teacher called Jenny.

I was very nervous as she casually said…play me something. So I played a couple of  tunes I liked from my music book. She said she was very surprised that I played so well given I was self taught, and said I was good enough to join her fiddle band if I wanted to.

I got home and announced to the family that I don’t really know what happened but I went for a lesson and ended up agreeing to join a band. Obviously there was much hilarity made of this. All the while I was thinking, OMG what have I got myself into!

Well today was the day. My first band gig. So nervous I didn’t know if I was going to be able to play the songs I’d learnt, also I’d only been to two band practices so I felt very under prepared and I only knew one song. I had spent all day trying to learn the bass line of another song I hadn’t played before and I was going to have to play without music in just a few hours time! No wonder my black tourmaline was calling me to banish any negativity. So I placed it in my pocket, picked up my violin and got myself out the front door.

Standing outside Towcester town hall with the other band members taking my place and playing for the first time was both terrifying and incredible at the same time. Ok, I had a few occasions where I missed my notes, but I was able to pick the tune back up again quickly and rejoin. Finally the evening came to an end and I could relax with a drink in the local pub.

What did I learn from today? You never know where a decision will take you and I shouldn’t let fear hold me back…(however I’m still not doing a bungee jump!). Who knows where this will lead. But I’m looking forward to finding out.

Black Tourmaline — My Pocket Companion

I've carried black tourmaline on difficult days before, but today reminded me just how powerful that small act of intention can be. Black tourmaline is one of the most well-known protective stones in crystal work — it's long been used to create a kind of energetic shield, absorbing and deflecting negative energy, fear, and self-doubt before they can take hold.

If you're facing something that's making your heart race, black tourmaline might be just what you need in your corner. Whether you tuck one in your pocket, hold it before something daunting, or simply keep it on your desk as a reminder that you are more capable than fear tells you, it has a way of quietly doing its work.

You can find black tourmaline here— because sometimes the bravest thing you can do is show up, and it helps to have a little support along the way.