In four days, I will hyperventilating while trying to put on false eye lashes and a “statement piece” of jewelry. Moments before the show starts, I’m sure that nagging voice of self-doubt will creep in. I’ll listen to the eleven stories before mine wondering if the audience or the cast would notice if I went missing before the final number.
On Thursday, May 10th I will be performing with 10 mothers and 1 dad in the San Francisco production of Listen to Your Mother. I’m nervous and excited and nervous and proud and nervous and still deciding what shoes to wear with my silk dress.
The premise for Listen To Your Mother was born from BlogHer’s Voices of the Year in which women read award-worthy original writing. There’s something quite powerful about hearing the spoken word of parenting experiences. Whether it is the harrowing tale of surviving a miscarriage or living through the heartbreak of your mother’s death. There’s also something rather cathartic in knowing you weren’t the only teenager who looked at your mother and thought “I will never become her,” only to realize two decades later than you were, in fact, just like your mother.
When we read together as an ensemble for the first time, I cried through everyone’s piece. I wasn’t that they were all tear-jerkers. I was so moved by this group of women sharing their own experiences — experiences that I’ve lived in my own life — that I couldn’t do anything but cry. It was as if I had found my people. My tribe. If you listen to these mothers, you may just find your people too.
Tickets are still available for Thursday’s performance at Fort Mason. Join us for the ultimate Mom’s Night Out.
