Editor's note: A version of this story was first published on July 5, 2024, on stcloudlive.com. ST. CLOUD — When Janelle Kendall was 7 years old, her parents bought her a three-stringed ukulele. Soon, her instructor told her parents she had mastered the instrument. “I remember him saying, ‘She's mastered this in six weeks. She needs six strings. I can teach her things. She gets it. She's soaking it in as fast as I can give it to her,’” Kendall said.