Dad's Dulcimer

My dad isn’t musically inclined. Not even close. He doesn’t play a musical instrument, doesn’t sing, and probably couldn’t tell you the difference between the treble and bass clefs. In fact, the closest I’ve seen him to music is when he ran the sound board at church or when he sat through a dreaded, 3-hour band concert at the high school. Though, I do remember hearing him sing once… a long time ago. He was standing in church, holding me in his arms. I laid my head back on his chest, and as the notes came out, I felt each vibration under my nestled head. It was monotone, but manly. Deep and reassuring. My daddy was singing, and I remember being intrigued by the sound.

Now the intrigue is back. My dad is diving into a musical endeavor, a surprise to say the least. For his 56th birthday, he selected an unusual gift, one we would never have envisioned him buying. We’re used to him purchasing DVDs not dulcimers. But a dulcimer it was. He made the discovery while on a recent road trip to Branson, MO. He and a friend wandered into the dulcimer shop while their wives perused the nearby scrapbooking store.

Under strong persuasion (and near force) from the store owner, my dad diffidently strummed the instrument. Following the “play by number” music placed in front of him, he went from musical illiteracy to song-playing in a matter of minutes. And an hour later, he was the proud owner of a “Build Your Own Dulcimer” kit.

Keeping the kit a secret, he returned to Nebraska. All he said to me and my sisters about the trip was, “You’ll never guess what I got for my birthday.” Both he and my mom were tight-lipped about it until the “Big Reveal” last night. They wrapped up wood glue, staining oil, and clothespins as clues, and we had to guess what the gift was. Somehow we made it to dulcimer, after spanning every other option in the book.

So, over the next few weeks my dad will be constructing his new instrument, and soon we’ll be graced by the sounds of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” at family gatherings. I have to say I’m looking forward to it. Maybe it will remind me of that one Sunday in church.