My Musical Talent - Leona Quinata

Coming from the pacific islands, I grew up playing string instruments, such as the guitar and the ukulele. Many islanders enjoy jamming on their instruments and singing, which is what I enjoy and I’m also really good at. When I was in the third grade, I was exposed to playing the ukulele by my oldest brother. He would sing and play for me every day after school. Whenever he did so, I would ask him to teach me how to play the ukulele. He would then try to, but because my hands were small I had a hard time playing. Even though my hands were small, I would practice every day, until I finally became good at it. After months of practicing, by the end of third grade, I became good at playing the ukulele. At the time, my brother had gotten his first guitar. He would play the guitar and sing every day for fun. Seeing him play made me want to learn how to play it too. My hands were still small, and it kept me from playing the guitar because my fingers couldn’t hold all six strings. It was very difficult to play but I didn’t stop me from wanting to learn how to play it. I practiced and practiced every single day until I finally got it right. Even though my fingers were small/ short, I was able to play the guitar. Up to now I still play the guitar and ukulele. Whenever I get bored, I just start jamming on my ukulele and guitar. Sometimes I try to create my own songs. There was never a day when I would not play my ukulele and guitar. Playing these instruments is something I believe I have to do, because I don’t want to stray from playing it. I’m not that professional in playing these instruments, so I’m still trying to perfect the music I play and I try to get better at it. Other than playing the ukulele, I enjoy singing. Ever since I was a little girl, I loved to sing; whether it’s just for fun or actually performing on stage. In the 5th grade, I began my first stage performance with a group of students from my elementary school and another school. We had practice every Tuesdays and Thursdays, preparing for our performance. As the performance date approached, I became nervous; however, I didn’t let it keep me from performing. That day, the whole school came to watch us sing. When I got on stage, I realized that there were hundreds of people watching. Usually I would be freaking out, but instead I became excited because we were singing for that many people. At the end of the performance, I was relieved because we didn’t mess up any of the songs. After this experience I wanted to do more stage performances. When I was in middle school, I joined chorus. We performed for many events. I wanted to audition to do a solo for one of these events, but I was too scared. Up to now, I still regret not auditioning. In the future, I want to audition for a show and finally sing solo on stage playing my ukulele and guitar.