And on a different level...
When I was in high school I bought an old and exceptionally battered 12 string guitar, and old Guild import called a Madiera, which had the most amazing sound I've heard from a guitar. Probably had something to do with the fact that it had been smashed over some guy's head and repaired, so the top was far more responsive than it should have been... so when I went to college the guitar went with me, and I played it nonstop.

One of the people I met there was a guy named Dan who became one of my best friends. He asked me to teach him to play and I agreed, and taught him on this old 12 string. He fell completely in love with that instrument, and any time he came by my dorm room he would make a beeline for it and play it the whole time he was there. It was therapy of the best sort for him.

That Christmas when I went home, my big present was a brand-new Takamine 12 string. I was, of course, beyond ecstatic. But I already had a 12 string, so why did I need two of them?

The first day back at college I put the old Madiera in its case and walked up to Dan's room with it. I told him of my big present, then held out the old guitar. "Merry Christmas, Dan."

The expression on his face as he took it was one of the greatest memories I have.
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Sun 13 Mar 2005, 10:19, Reply)