Well, I joined an orchestra camp when I was in the 2nd grade - my parents figured that I was just about Asian enough to learn at least one instrument..so I picked up the violin for the first time. I thought all of the other school children were dumb as bricks so I told my parents to take me out of that hellhole. And for about three years I taught myself how to play via YouTube, which, worked out better than you'd expect. Halfway through grade 5 I enrolled in the actual orchestra class since I figured, "hey, those kids have been playing formally in a classroom setting for one whole year now - maybe they could at least know how to hold their instruments.". And so I played in the school orchestras from grade 5 up until grade 9. The experience produced some of my most fond memories of primary school. I met a lot of friends through that system; unfortunately we don't really get a chance to talk anymore.

When high school came around, I decided to spend more time in sports and clubs rather than music, so I quit playing the violin altogether...went to a music store, sold my violin, gave away my sheet music to anyone who'd take it. I don't regret it, but it was something I probably could have fit into my schedule now that I think about it.

For my senior year in high school I decided to pick up music again - but not the violin since my god are they expensive to buy and maintain. I picked up the guitar because people told me it was easy to learn. And it was. I'm a year and a half into now and I've taken up the fingerstyle route to playing.