Storyteller Story #5: I Talk to the Spirits

This may be the last time,

This may be the last time,

This may be the last time. It may be the last time, I don’t know…

Ohhhhh, I remember when I was a little girl in church in the middle pew. Smack dab in the middle. Hair in pig tails. “All rise.” Fellowship time. Sister Washington bangin’ away on that old piano. Time to sing: This May Be The Last Time. My favorite. Our voices come together as one. Mostly off key but still one. The Lord hears our cry. Better when we raise our voices together. The Lord hears my prayers. Oh I know what people say about me. The Lord hears me and I hear him right back. I got the gift. Just like my mama and her mama before her. “Those Francois women…witches all of em…” Kids would tell the teacher I was giving them the evil eye in school. That’s all it took for the teacher to give me the strap. But the nasty stuff folks say don’t change nothin’: the dead talk and they talk to me. There’s nothin’ wrong with bein’ dead jus’ like there’s nothin’ wrong with bein’ alive. Both sides want to be heard. I’m just one of the ones that can hear ev’rybody. Even if what they sayin’ ain’t worth half a penny.

Storyteller Story #3: Wind & Leaves

“I like long walks on the beach, horseback riding, and deep conversation…” No. Scratch that. “Stimulating conversation.” Crap. I hate writing these stupid things. You can’t sound too smart you’ll scare someone off. You can sound like an idiot and you might get a date. Then they are disappointed when they find out you are smart. If you are physically attractive and smart, well…then their head might just explode. Ok. Let’s try this: “Multi-faceted individual. Looking for someone to grow with…” That sounds like a resume. Ok. “Must love nature. Must love hiking or at least walking. I love seeing the emerald green of my surroundings and feeling a cool breeze on my skin after working up a good sweat…” Hmmm. No. Too cheesy. Well…wait. I don’t want to sound all ‘hippy dippy’ but that’s kind of who I am. Right? I’ll leave it. Oh, who am I kidding? “I love horseback riding and long walks on the beach. Looking for someone to be my ‘plus one’…”

Storyteller Story #1 - Do You Hear The Drums?

The most important component of my most recent show Storyteller was the stories that accompanied each piece. Some are long, some are short. Some are more like poems others monologues. Each, though, says a little about the person that I imagine would wear each piece.

People at the showing told me how much they enjoyed reading the stories that accompanied the work.  I thought it would be a shame if the only place people really read them was at the show so I decided to post them again here. I will post one a week here until they are all up.

Story One: Can You Hear the Drums? 

Can You Hear the Drums?

Boom Ba. Boom de boom bop bop! Thump. Thump. Thump…I can feel it in my chest. In my heart. That whole rhythm is in my body. My mama said I came out dancing! Popin’ and lockin’. Break Dancin’. Tap. Jazz. Modern. Even a little ballet. I don’t discriminate. Definitely a little African. Positively Brazilian. I threw a little capoeira in there. Do that sweet side flip that drives the girls wild and stops those boys in their tracks. Only men here. They don’ know who they messin’ with! They don’t know in the battle it’s not with me they fightin’. It’s the beat. It’s the rhythm. It’s the drums. It’s the bass. It’s the passion. It’s the color. It’s the light. It’s the heart. It’s the music. It’s the love. And everybody knows you can’t fight the love.