Stage Fright

Dad’s sweatshirt transforms into a velvet cape,
draped over my shoulders.
I flourish a stick I found in the yard
in front of an appreciative plush audience.
Passing it over a hat I found
for a quarter at a garage sale,

I conjure flying silk squares,
and moon white rabbits
that do somersaults,
and sing songs dryads taught them
back when the world had plenty of magic beans.

But when I bring my wand, hat, and cape
to the school talent show,
when I stand alone on the stage,
all that I find in my hat is rabbit poo.


This poem was inspired by a prompt given over at Imaginary Gardens for Real Toads: Weekend Mini Challenge, Following a Thread

32 comments:

  1. ha! that was some trick, conjuring away the hare before the spotlights hit it. ~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL, yes, the moment that magic goes left when you want it to go right.

      Delete
  2. Delightful tale, crisp with the badabing of the final line's kicker. All of it comes fully alive, and its a great parable about the burden of the real in an imagined paradise.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Real world considerations do have a way of intruding on our most delightful imaginings.

      Delete
  3. Ha. This is a wonderful story, and very sweetly told. The less friendly stage can be like that! Thanks. k.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's amazing what we lose the ability to do once we know someone is watching.

      Delete
  4. I really love the end of this, you made me smile, though I felt sad for a failure that edged so very close to success.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed. After I wrote it, I hoped the protagonist realized how close s/he really came.

      Delete
  5. I love the imagination of this, the description of the play that sets the stage to live a wonder-filled life. It is a hard lesson to learn, though, that sometimes our magic is for us alone. Sweet and sad!

    ReplyDelete
  6. The magic goes up in a puff when you have to share it with unbelievers. Sweet poem of life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And like Sharon said, sometimes the biggest magic is meant to be more quiet and personal rather than showy and public.

      Delete
  7. "back when the world had plenty of magic beans" -- what a bittersweet line. It gave my heart a pang.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad I succeeded creating that feeling with that line.

      Delete
  8. Lol Oh I do love that end! Love the nods to magic, childhood, and the stage here -- I can feel the moment as if I were there, believing I could pull the rabbit out the hat along with my dreams. :-) Thanks for this sweet poem!

    ReplyDelete
  9. yet, I get a sense you continued, I love the ending

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can see a story where the protagonist does find, if not the success they expected, some sort of satisfaction.

      Delete
  10. Not all bad, Rommy. At least the 'magician' had the rabbit in his hat. Now how did it get out?
    ..

    ReplyDelete
  11. The magic of childhood.. with what do we replace it in our old age?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Another good question. The best I can come up with right now, is perhaps a shift in perspective.

      Delete
  12. Rabbits have no manners, I tell ya.

    The progression of this poem is so perfect, Rommy. The reader feels the excitement with the speaker, the wand is in our hand, the cape at our back... and then the shock of the poo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, bunnies aren't cute like everybody supposes. They have those beady eyes and twitchy little noses. :D

      Delete
  13. I loved the trip this poem took - esp the sad ending - ta-da!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad the journey was good even if the end was sad. :)

      Delete
  14. LOL! This was fantastic! A great read! As we get older, we have to realize magic is truly everywhere! We just have to see it through our heart!

    ReplyDelete