Memory Poem

The glare of white light reflecting off the lavender floor. Standing off to one side anxiously awaiting my cue. In the last few minutes before I walk on, everything becomes crystal clear, as if I were dissevered from the world. The faint smell of fresh paint combined with the perfume from my hairspray. The dialogue sounds different somehow, even though it had become perfunctory from hearing it over and over, every day for the last month. I’m not nervous. Auditions, memorizing countless lines, hundreds of hours of practice, costume fittings, hair styling have all lead up to this one moment. I reflect on the other members of the play. Everyone is resplendent in their new costumes. The joy, fear, tears, and fights we have had don’t matter any more. I’m not nervous. Soon I will begin cavorting across the stage in the chimerical show. My mind flicks through my lines, making sure I am prepared, I know I am. The melee is always so much fun! My entrance is getting close. Soon the spoony antics will begin. I am reminded of how much I love this. The adrenaline, the buzzing nerves with the slightest twinge of fear is intoxicating. My chest gets tight with excitement. The audience is good tonight. Opening night is my favorite, the rush is the best. It crosses my mind how I wish the rush could last longer. Five lines away. Final adjustments to my costume, pull the skirt down, smooth my hair. Take a deep breath, excitement permeating ever fiber of my body. Two lines away now. My cue line. I walk onstage and begin my monologue. All of a sudden the nerves hit. NOW I’m nervous. But it is exhilarating.



Dissevered- (v) to separate, to sever
Permeate (v) to pass into or through ever part
Cavorting (v) to bound or prance in a sprightly manner, cavort
Exhilarating (v) to enliven; invigorate; stimulate
Intoxicating (adj) exhilarating, exciting
Resplendent (adj) shining brilliantly; gleaming; splendid
Chimerical (adj)wildly fanciful; highly unrealistic
Spoony (adj) foolish; silly
Melee (n) confusion; turmoil; jumble
Perfunctory (adj) performed merely as a routine duty; hasty and superficial