Home is Where the Curtain Is

It’s T-Minus ninety minutes until opening night and the pre-show jitters haven’t yet kicked in. Right now, Jasmin’s focus is on preparation. The cast has just had their practice run through, and now it’s time for Jasmin’s least favorite part: hair and make-up. Growing up, Jasmin was a total tom-boy: no dresses, no skirts, no pink, and most of all, NO MAKE-UP. But her years of performing have made make-up a little more bearable, although you’ll never catch her wearing make-up on a normal day.  She’s finally got her stage make-up on and is ready to begin her hair regimen, although she cringes at the thought of having to take all that stage make-up off after the performance. Thankfully, today’s role doesn’t require any extreme hair styles–she just throws her hair up into a regal bun and is ready to go.

It’s now T-Minus sixty minutes until curtain and time for a pre-performance meal. What are the players having today? Yum, spaghetti! Nothing calms the nerves like some tasty comfort food. Jasmin chats with her friends as she attempts to delicately eat her spaghetti, so as not to smudge her make up. She tries in vain to keep her mind off the coming show and her growing pre-show jitters. Finally, dinner is over and its time for Jasmin’s preparation ritual. She quietly slips away to an uninhabited hallway. She pulls out her Ipod, puts her head phones gingerly in her ears, and turns to her faithful song, “Background” by Lecrae.

As she quietly mumbles the words, she fervently prays along with the lyrics:

It’s evident you run the show, so let me back down. 
You take the leading role, and I’ll play the background…

At the end of the song, she is pumped and ready to go, she’s put her performance in God’s hands. It’s as if a two-hundred pound weight has been lifted from her shoulders and she’s free. She hears someone shout,”Places!” from backstage. She puts her Ipod away, tells everyone to break a leg, and finds her place. The audience slowly goes silent, a booming voice comes on over the loud speaker: “Please silence all cell phones, and enjoy the show.” The house lights dim. Jasmin takes a deep breath and steps out on stage, knowing this is where she belongs.