My name is Sara. When I was little, I played the drums. I also had a guitar. In fourth grade, I started playing the trombone (长号). I practised about four hours a week. All of this might not seem like a big deal for a lot of kids, but there's something about me that makes me a bit different from others. I was born without hands. Since I was about one year old, I've worn prosthetics (假肢).
This year, I got an invitation to join the high school marching band (行进管乐队). I told my mom I wanted to do it. But I had an instructor who thought I would not be able to march in the band — not because it was a high school band and I was only in seventh grade, but probably because my body was different. All I wanted was to show that I could do it, so I joined the band. And it paid off!
Music gives me energy. That happens sometimes. One time I was so down that I didn't even want to get out of bed. Then I hit my MP3 player by accident. A song came on, and I got up and started dancing. It helped me say to myself, "OK, I can get through today. "
Around my musician friends, we all share the same problems, like working out how many beats there are in a measure (小节). I have a hard time counting the beats, but so do a lot of the other kids. It's a normal problem that we musicians share. When I'm with the band, I don't feel as different as I do in other situations. It's just another way that music makes me want to go on, and not to just sit down by myself and not care about life.
