there's more to life than this

When I was about 8 I got the idea that I needed to write a play, find costumes and act it out for my mom and her friend.

So I sat down on the front steps of my house and wrote a two-act play.

In this play I was the lead actress (of course) and played two roles: in the first act I was this sweet-as-pie princessy kind of character, bland as bland could be. In Act II I played the role of Serena (I remember her name because it was so predictable a name to use for an evil woman, and because her character was far more interesting than the milquetoast heroine of Act I). The plot was something about Serena plotting against her sweet and loveable sister (but I think she was ultimately foiled in her devious plans) and consisted of mostly monologue (I wrote in a small supporting role for my best friend J.Y., who played Serena's servant-girl) about how good or evil my characters were. Serena also got to wear all black -- leotards and a spider web-ish sort of shawl borrowed from mom's hippy wardrobe. I loved playing Serena, being evil and wearing black and telling my servant what to do.

The play eventually opened to an appreciative audience of two. I didn't concern myself with the reviews too much, I knew it was good. I kept the handwritten pages of (mono-)dialogue attached to the notebook pad and stashed it in the top drawer of my dresser -- every once and a while it would rise to the surface of the stuff I was pawing thru in my drawers, rise into my consciousness again and I would savor the short but amazing life of Serena.

After the play closed (the same day it opened)I felt a bit guilty about giving J.Y. such a small, degrading part -- that is, until she stole the $2 bill my grandma had sent to me.