It all started on 2 January last year. Scrolling idly through Instagram, I came across a post from the American violinist Hilary Hahn with the hashtag #100daysofpractice. She had explained in a previous post, ‘Last time, in January 2022 — which feels like years ago! — we embarked on a gentle 100 days, and it was really rewarding. This time, it feels right to explore the intersection of self-motivation and self-compassion. What do you think? Might you join?’
Not normally one to hoist my decisions to hashtags or crazes (‘I did sit-ups for 17 days and this is what happened!’; ‘I drank beetroot juice for three weeks and look at me now!’), I had a strange impulse. It was nearly three years on from lockdown, during which I had taken my violin out of its case barely two or three times over an entire year (I still haven’t worked out whether through sadness or laziness). I was back to my amateur orchestras and
