glorious moment

My hands are sweaty. I've been doing this for years now but I still get the chills everytime. The same feeling in my gut. The excitement, the nervousness, all wrapped into one. There's nothing quite like that rush.

I can hear them right now. I can hear them whispering, murmering. Some excited, some regulars and used to it, but one thing is common: They're all waiting for me.

I'm on in 5 minutes. I run the words over and over again in my head. I rerun all my movements and prepare myself in silence.

I get distracted a bit and reminisce about everything I had to do to get here. The hard work, the long hours, it seemed so hard back then, but now, it's all worth it.

I shake off the nostalgia and start to focus back on the task.

Finally, I'm ready to go.

I walk my way to my position and stare at the marvelous fabric of red.

And then, the most beautiful music starts to play. I close my eyes and enjoy the harmony and the grace of more than 30 instruments coming together and playing as one.

Then, the curtains rise.

I step into the light and darkness becomes hundreds of people on their feet cheering and delighted by my prescence. This is the moment that makes everything worthwhile.

Then the whole place turns silent.

The intro music starts to play. All rehearsals go out the window, they're only there to prepare you for this moment. But now, it's just me and the music. The moment belongs to me.

I start to sing and I feel every word that I utter as if I'm living the words of the song. I live for this, when I transcend simple performing to something else, something greater. The audience hangs on to every word I say as I take them on a roller coaster ride from start to finish.

I hook the audience and myself from start to end.
The first stanza is my birth
The second stanza is my childhood
The first chorus is me, 16 years old, kissing a girl for the very first time
The third stanza is when I turned into an adult
The second chorus is when I married that girl ten years after the first kiss
The bridge is when we had our son
The third chorus is when my son had a son of his own
The final chorus is today, in the twilight of my life
The last line is my thanks and my goodbye

The music ends with swift and graceful finish. The audience is up on their feet. Some are cheering loudly, some are in tears.

I bow and graciously accept their praise and exit the stage.

I humbly receive the congratulations and start to pack my things to leave. Tomorrow is another day, a new audience and another moment.

I look at the now empty theatre and appreciate every inch of it. I know I'm nearing the end of my career and my journey in life.

I bow to an empty stage and leave.