Teaching Piano Resurrected My Roots [VIDEO]

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I never knew my love for music could grow any stronger, and then I met Jack.

One night at one of Fun 107's Food For Tots night out with the Friends of Jack Foundation, I was asked a question that ultimately would change my life for better.

Jill Fearons, who is the CEO of Friends of Jack, had asked me if I taught piano. Right away, I told her I didn't, but have a minor in piano that I had obtained at Lyndon State College up in Vermont. It was a three-course class that I took just for fun, to beef up the resumé.

Little did I know that it would come in handy someday.

I told her that I would come up with some sort of curriculum and follow up with whatever ideas I mustered up.

The time came when it was time to meet the kids: Jack, Maggie and Callie (a friend of the Fearons family). Long story short, the girls became too busy with extra-curricular activities such as sports, and it became a one-on-one session with little Jack.

After about four months of practicing once a week, every Tuesday, Jack became obsessed with learning how to play and eventually learned to love the art of music as much as I did at that age.

Eventually, our Tuesday meet-ups became something much more than just a lesson. For me, it was an escape from reality; for him, it was an hour to hang out and have fun. While simultaneously expanding his knowledge, he was also enjoying himself.

We even write our own music and songs, so that he can learn to be creative in a world full of originality.

One of the aspects of our friendship that I admire the most is that Jack now spends his days playing and practicing the piano instead of playing video games or wasting the day on YouTube. Instead, he now shares his newly found musical talent with the YouTube world and for that, I couldn't be any prouder.

I've been friends with the Fearons for a while now and I'm a proud member of The Friends of Jack Foundation, where I can not only help a young boy learn the piano and share my love of music with him, but I can also give back to a local organization that supports the physical and mental health and emotional well being of children in crisis in the greater SouthCoast region.

So to my buddy, my pal, and my good friend Jack, I not only thank you for allowing me to share my love and passion for music and piano with you, but for also reminding me to take a second to remember what life is all about through the eyes of a musician who is simply trying to change the world one potential piano player at a time.