Let me set the stage for you. A high school senior walks into her Pennsylvania History class on the first day of school - only having wanted to take this course to fill a slot in her schedule.
The teacher introduces himself as Jerome Manley, and my first thought was how epic his name is. Then he mentioned starting a guitar club.
Now, by that point I had been playing guitar for four and a halfyears and I promised myself that I would join a club since it was my last year of high school.
I took the plunge and signed up for the inaugural year of the Shamokin Area Guitar Club.
It never even crossed my mind that Mr. Manley would actually want us to perform outside of club meetings. Oh, how wrong I was.
He wanted - for the club's first EVER appearance I might add - for us to play a song at the school talent show. In front of the entire school.
The day came and went in the blink of an eye.
One moment I was rehearsing with the rest of the club and the next we were walking off stage after playing "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes.
From that day on I knew I was hooked.
But why was I excited to get up on stage and perform in front of over 100 people, yet I still couldn't get over the daunting fear of public speaking?
Truth be told, I don't have an answer.
Perhaps it's because I've always loved music and have wanted to have the guts to get up and sing my entire life? Maybe it's the reassurance that my friends give me when we're up there together?
All I know is that every time I hear the word "presentation" or am out in a social setting, my anxiety spikes.
The guitar club has definitely helped my confidence significantly. I'm pumped to perform now and just have fun singing the songs my friends and I pick.
I owe a lot to a club I just joined for fun. If it weren't for I know I wouldn't be where I am today, as cliché as that is to say.
Social anxiety and self confidence have always been a struggle for me. But now because of this little family that has grown so much in the past year, I can say that each of those things are getting better.
