My Guitar (Descriptive)

My most valuable possession is an old, slightly warped Philippine-made guitar--the first instrument I taught myself how to play. It's nothing fancy, just an ordinary guitar, all scuffed and scratched and finger-printed. At the top is a bramble of copper-wound strings, each one hooked through the eye of a silver tuning key. The strings are stretched down a long, slim neck, its frets tarnished, its wood worn by years of fingers pressing chords and picking notes. The body is shaped like an enormous yellow pear, one that was slightly damaged in shipping. The very dark red wood has been chipped and gouged to gray, particularly where the pick guard fell off years ago. No, it's not a beautiful instrument, but it still lets me make music, and for that I will always treasure it.