My New Thing

Summer has a way of bringing the best out in me. I know it’s not even officially summer yet, we have a whole month to go, but sunshine in general is pretty good for my soul, as I think it is everyone’s. When I was in Ohio, I found an open mic/ poetry slam that I suggested we go to. The newlyweds agreed and came along.  The only stipulation my daughter had, was that I participate. I agreed, so we went. I’ve been doing the local poetry scene, but it’s been kind of stressful because I have this whole fear of public speaking thing, but it’s kind of a double edge sword. I love poetry and I love sharing poetry, but it scares me to death. Then I think, isn’t being scared a part of life? I always answer with a resounding, YES! So we went to the poetry reading, and I participated….sober. That in itself is a feat, because I usually have to self-medicate to get my jitters under control. And it was awesome. I was so excited about it, when I got back home, I was itching to do it again. So I looked all around for an open mic nearby so I could continue to practice, because practice makes perfect, right? The closest one was in Atlanta. It’s only a three hour drive and I was feeling brave and adventurous, so I drove there the very next day I got back.  Doors opened at 7 and the show started at 8. I got there at 8:10 and totally missed getting on the list to read, but I did get to enjoy some other amazing poets and spoken word artists so it was totally worth it. Anyway, my new thing is going to be that I’m going to continue to go to random open mics and I’m going to continue to try to get over this stage fright thing. I’m also going to work on memorizing everything I do so I don’t have to be so dependent on my phone. And maybe then, I can get someone to record me on it. That’s my plan anyway. We shall see how it goes.