Introducing Oskaretta (and Lu and Iggy)

A few months before working on summer camp staff for the first time, my brother helped me purchase my first guitar. I figured that guitar playing would be a good skill to have. That first guitar was a simple Oscar Schmidt starter guitar, acoustic, darkish brown wood. His name was Oskar. My brother taught me my first basic chords on Oskar. I completed four years of summer missions and two years of teaching with Oskar. I recorded my first CD with Oskar and he took center stage on that CD cover. Then Oskar was stolen was from my classroom, and I was very sad.

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A few weeks ago, I went to one of my student’s music recitals. She played piano. Her sister played guitar and violin (on different songs of course). I was very impressed by the recital and I was equally intrigued by the guitars that the music teacher had suggested for her students. After playing one of the guitars, I decided that it might be good to purchase one to keep in my classroom. In the process of searching for a very specific guitar, I stumbled upon a beautiful Oscar Schmidt guitar that I had to make myself not buy simply for nostalgic purposes.

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Yesterday, I went to my favorite little local music store. After piddling around for a little while, talking to the store owner, and playing the two nicest guitars in the room, I looked up and saw another guitar that I thought was pretty. [Yes. I know. Pretty isn’t necessarily the most important thing about a guitar!] When I asked about the guitar, the owner said, “Oh. That’s nothing much. Just an Oscar Schmidt that someone traded in.” I said, “Really?! An Oscar Schmidt?! That was the first guitar I bought from you! And I was just looking at another Oscar Schmidt online. Can I play this one?!” So I played it. And almost immediately both the store owner and I knew that I was leaving the store with a new guitar.

She just fit.

Her name is Oskaretta, Oskar’s daughter. She used to belong to a Woodstock attending, Harley-Davidson riding, eclectic, brilliant Catholic missionary.

Now she belongs in my musical family…with an awesome coordinating strap and capo. [While pretty isn’t necessarily the most important thing about a guitar, it is important to properly accessorize once the guitar has spoken its desire to belong to a family.]

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So I began with an Oscar Schmidt many years and now I’m back to the same. For now.

Funny how time brings things back around.

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Oskaretta S. Deaton: I will do my best to take care of you and to continue your original owner’s work of sharing God’s love through music. Here’s to a new, unexpected partnership that I hope benefits us both. Amen.