Ukuleles are our musical instruments.

In the natural order of life, we're most likely to outlive our pets, but our instruments will very likely outlive us, and whoever plays them after we're gone, and after that person's gone (provided they're well cared for, of course). I am a devoted cat lover for all my adult life (unfortunately had none in my childhood), some might even say I'm a cat whisperer, and I've found that it is it is the felines' unique individual natures, their "otherness" to humans, and definitely the transience of their existence, that endears and bonds me with them all the more during the time I have with them. I cherish the photos from all stages of the lives of the ones that have gone on and the memories they evoke. OTOH, I look at pictures taken over the years of me with my instruments, and guess which one of the subjects inevitably shows their advancing age the most clearly? Hmmm, I wonder if on some level, I am my instruments' "pet". LOL

bratsche
 
I know that my ukuleles will never love me back. But I do feel an attachment to them that I don't have with my blender or toasteroven. Even through both have made me feel warm and toasty from time to time.
 
I for one, absolutely bond with mine. If I dont, they get sold. I think it also depends on your story. I spent 14 years searching for an instrument that "felt" right. When you spend that long searching and then strum a uke for the first time and feel like its a long lost family member, yup, bonded. Reasons for playing is another. For some, its just something to do and a uke is just a tool...thats great, everyone has their reasons. I tend to be a very high stress, high anxiety introvert. Just "adulting" is hard some days. The world is very peopley at times LOL. My uke is like a long lost friend when I get home. Playing knocks my blood pressure down and relaxes me. When something just does THAT MUCH for you as a person, bonding and naming ukes just goes with the territory. As a newbie I am just amazed at the instrument itself. When I can sit in front of my boyfriend who is playing his acoustic guitar and FEEL his music coming out of his instrument and then resonating within mine and making it vibrate right in my hands...that my friends is not an inanimate object to me. It was once a living breathing tree and its now a still living, wood instrument that screams to you that its alive. Yup...for me, I will always love them and hug them and call them George LOL!
 
In the natural order of life, we're most likely to outlive our pets, but our instruments will very likely outlive us, and whoever plays them after we're gone, and after that person's gone (provided they're well cared for, of course). I am a devoted cat lover for all my adult life (unfortunately had none in my childhood), some might even say I'm a cat whisperer, and I've found that it is it is the felines' unique individual natures, their "otherness" to humans, and definitely the transience of their existence, that endears and bonds me with them all the more during the time I have with them. I cherish the photos from all stages of the lives of the ones that have gone on and the memories they evoke. OTOH, I look at pictures taken over the years of me with my instruments, and guess which one of the subjects inevitably shows their advancing age the most clearly? Hmmm, I wonder if on some level, I am my instruments' "pet". LOL

bratsche

What an awesome post bratsche! This board certainly has some interesting and deep thinking people on it. Wow. I don't see any musical instruments as "pets" at all. They're just that, instruments of mass enjoyment if we allow them to be so. We get out of them what we put into them, and I don't mean financially. Of course the same could be said for many other things in life too.
 
I didn't want to rain on Cassie's thread, and I realize that some people really become emotionally attached to their ukuleles. And like life, for some that turns out to be a long term commitment, for most it appears, it lasts until the next one comes walking by. For me, after three years of playing the ukulele, I have not bonded emotionally with either or any of my ukuleles. I like my ukuleles, don't think that I don't, but they are just ukuleles to me. I'll go ahead and admit that I have an emotional attachment to making music, but not to my uke. So let's take it from there.

Oh yes, some may not have attachment to their ukulele but some do. I am very much attached to Kalea. She has been with me two years and I'm very much attached to her. She is my savior from UAS. A lot of people have puppies and kitty cats, but when you don't want to have an actual pet, a ukulele is the best way to go.
 
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