Hello Gentle Reader!
I have two very strong beliefs that I like to live by. The first is that I believe that the most important thing worth fighting for is love. I don’t mean physical love exclusively. I mean, anything that you love with your entire being. ANYTHING.
The second is a more recent belief that hit me about five or six years ago. I believe that a life worth living is made up of the connections you create.
Something happened last week that reaffirmed that belief. I was working the #survivaljob when I happened to greet a very kind older Middle Eastern Indian woman. She was absolutely lovely and she spoke of India as though she were homesick. I could see the tears welling up in her eyes as she told me how she missed the custom of welcoming all visitors into the home to talk as that doesn’t happen here in America. We chatted for about 20 minutes and I could tell she was needing to talk to someone other than her family. That conversation affected me the whole day and I couldn’t get that image of her eyes out of my head. I felt like I needed that interaction to happen too, as a reminder that I needed to put the work into strengthening my connections and bonds to something more than just passing hellos or sporadic meet ups.
Then, on Sunday, a friend of mine lost her year long fight with cancer. She wasn’t a very touchy feely person, but we spoke about how she felt about it. The last time we spoke she said that the latest round of treatment was tough but she was tougher and she wasn’t ready to stop fighting. I wouldn’t expect anything else from her. She didn’t suffer fools and put up with no nonsense, and even as this was in her personality, we had some amazing and wonderful bouts of laughter. The kinds that make you feel like you spent 4 hours in the gym working on your abs. People would walk into the museum and we would just wave them in because we didn’t have the breath to say hi.
My Dear Reader, these connections are important, I think, because they build a person into someone sympathetic and empathetic and more humane to others. The impact you leave on this world can be bigger than you know.
The thing about those connections, though, is that they don’t just move forward. They move in all directions. Music that you listen to can connect you backward through memories. Sharing a group experience (maybe like good theatre or concert or movie) can create a connection that spiderwebs out like a crack on a mirror.
No one is an island. Even a deserted island is altered by the sea and wind and sun. I really hope Smokey Joe’s Cafe has an effect on the viewer to help them recall things that happened in their lives and I hope with all my heart that they are all good things.
Monday night, the full cast was together again and I got to hear “Stand By Me” and I almost broke down. I did keep it together but I really just wanted to go home and knit (which is something my friend and I would talk about.)
Anyway, I am SO happy to report that #smojos is going REALLY well. I have 3 numbers to stage which are just ballads, but other than that, we are cleaning up numbers for the next two weeks. After that, it is all run thru for nearly 4 weeks before we open. We will be ready.
Oh, Kindest Reader, I look forward to connecting with you. What do you believe about connecting with others?
Let me know in the comments below!
Until next time!
The Actorvist 