Picture By Hannah Starke

Last Curtain Call: The Actor’s Dementia

As I step through the curtain,
I receive a standing ovation.
But, I can’t remember why.

I did not complete the last act.
I no longer knew my lines.

They didn’t care.
They still loved me.
The queen of the show.

Last scene
Last act,
blank in my mind.

Strange words I spoke,
not in the script.

Will l miss the curtain call?
even when I’m there.

Do not applaud for me.
Applaud yourselves.

For you were there,
Loving me,
the Queen of the show.

Remember me,
the scenes we were in,
and the lines we spoke.

When we were together.
There was no script,
just ad-libbing.

Please,
Be here for me.
Until my last curtain call…

Patsy 11/24/2016