The First Few Notes

     When senior Javier Carreon first picked up the trumpet for band in sixth grade, it wasn’t something he wanted to do.

     “I just never saw myself playing an instrument,” Carreon said. “It was kind of just like, ‘Oh, this is more work that I have to put in now to something. I don’t really want to do it.’”

     It was Carreon’s mother and older sister who got him into band.

     “I was kind of forced into band a little bit,” Carreon said. 

     He said his sister played the trumpet, and she decided she no longer wanted to play it. So when Carreon went to sixth grade, it fell to him to play.

     “My mom was still paying for it, so she was like, ‘Here, take it. Go for it,’” Carreon said.

     But he was still skeptical. 

     “Beforehand, I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t really want to do this,’” Carreon said.
    It didn’t take long for him to change his mind. Carreon said he enjoyed it from the first day he stepped into the room.

     “When I actually stepped into the room, it was fun,” Carreon said.

      However, the change was not instantaneous.

     “It was more gradual,” Carreon said. “I feel like my passion for band grew as I got better. It was like, ‘I’m getting good at this thing, let me keep getting better.’”

     Luckily for him, it wasn’t too hard for him to find the motivation to keep getting better.

     “It was more of just me pushing myself,” Carreon said. “I like to be the best person I can be, and that trait about me really wanted me to push to get better.”

     Now, there’s little more he looks forward to.

     “I love it; it’s probably one of the highlights of my day,” Carreon said. “All my friends are there, and it’s just a good time. I love playing my instrument.”

     In fact, Carreon has been in band long enough to be able to participate in some of the more specific bands.

     “I’m in a lot of the things in band,” Carreon said. “Jazz band, pep band. I was in marching band, concert band, all that kind of stuff.”

     Of course, Carreon had a favorite.

     “I would say marching band was my favorite,” Carreon said. “Marching band is a big part of the fall school year, and I really enjoy playing at the football games. It gives me a chance to hang out with my friends that I wouldn’t hang out with outside of school.”

     Making friends wasn’t too hard, even though when he first walked in, he knew no one.

     “The only group of friends I had was from elementary school,” Carreon said. “And they weren’t in band at all. When I got into band in middle school, it was this whole different experience, and I was able to meet new people and actually participate in something.”

     For Carreon, participating was really helpful for fitting in while in a new environment. 

     “There was a lot of honor bands that I did,” Carreon said, “and just playing and keeping in contact with the people playing around me.”

     There were some benefits from playing in band that came outside of the band room.

     “It also helps with stress a little bit,” Carreon said. “If I’m stressed with another class, I like to go into WIN time and just play something for fun. Or when I’m at home and I’m kind of just having a bad day, I can sit and play on my trumpet for a little while. It’s a stress-relieving thing.”

     Although he is graduating, Carreon’s not done with the trumpet yet.

     “In the future after high school, I am planning to attend MCC for two years,” Carreon said. “I know that they have a couple band options I could try down there, as well as community bands, so I believe I will continue to play the trumpet.”

     That’s not all. When Carreon finishes his two years at MCC, he plans to attend a four-year university and major in either Business Management or Marketing, and he’s for sure wanting to do some band programs.

     Something Carreon hadn’t originally seen himself doing has turned out to be a big part of his life.

     “This is fun. This is something I can be happy with,” Carreon said.