James Christian here. With most posts on Rudimental University, I try to focus more on the percussive and musical side of things rather than talking about myself all the time. However, if you can bear with me on this post, I need to talk about a few personal things to let you know what has been going on with the site. I have had to focus more on balance with regard to music and family. Regular followers will have noticed that the amount of activity on the site has dropped off significantly over the past few months. The reason is that my life circumstances have also changed significantly.
Life Circumstances
My elementary aged son has some significant food allergies that require a lot of attention. His biggest allergy is corn, which—I have found out—is in practically everything. Aside from being the most common sweetener (high fructose corn syrup), corn is also in a number of surprising things, such as non-organic bananas because of the sprays they use to ripen them. Believe it or not, traces of corn are even in tap water and most brands of bottled water because of the filters used. Add a few other allergies to the mix, and it makes for a very difficult time selecting food for him to eat. (I could go on a mini-rant about some of the hidden ingredients in common groceries, but I’ll skip it for now.) Basically, my wife and I have to make all of his food from scratch. She does the vast majority of the food preparation, and she has been quite amazing in handling it all.
As I have mentioned in previous posts, I have been the percussion director at Paris High School in Paris, Texas since 2012. I have had some great moments with the students and staff there, but all good things must come to an end. At the beginning of the summer, I resigned from this position. My family and I are moving to San Antonio, Texas, where more specialty doctors and dietary options will be available. It was a difficult choice, but it was the right choice to make for my family.
Lessons on Work/Life Balance
In moments of major change, I always like to pause and glean the lessons from the situation. As a musician, we are constantly aware of the limitations on our time—how much more we want to practice, how many wonderful things we’d still like to accomplish. For me personally, I have many things I want to develop with Rudimental University. I want to write more music, create new resources, and partner with other percussionists to build something even bigger.
Of course, I still have all these goals, and I am still committed to creating great content. However, I have to balance priorities. Life doesn’t always operate on the timeline we would prefer. There are times I put a lot of effort into work, and there are times I need to put more effort into family. The past few months have been the latter situation.
The wonderful thing about the Internet is that you can pause and come back to what you’re working on. All the content on Rudimental University is still up and available to the entire world. When I am able, I will come back and continue to develop the plans I have for the site.
The Future of Rudimental University
I still have many big plans for Rudimental University. I haven’t forgotten! However, with the move this summer and getting settled in a new location, the new material won’t be added quite as quickly as it has been in the past.
I share my experience in the hope that it will help others. I would just encourage everyone to remember there is a season for everything. Life requires balance. Sometimes you get to focus more attention on music; sometimes more on family; sometimes more on yourself; sometimes more on something else. All of these seasons afford different opportunities, and they teach us different things. I think these seasons make us more well-rounded, and they give us new insights than we otherwise would have had. When I am able to devote more time to Rudimental University again, I will be a richer person for the experiences I’ve gone through, and that will bring something new to the material I create.
Thank you to everyone for continuing to follow the site. I hope you are having a great summer. Whether you are performing or watching others perform, I hope you are continuing to have some great percussion experiences! Be back soon with more percussion content!
—James