Acting up – a rehearsal

There was always the lure
                  of fame and fortune
to tread the boards
                  or take a job in the City
and in your head
                  the incessant voiceover
telling you to do this
                  to do that
to give it one more year
                  before finally deciding
to do it no more
                  to abandon your vocation
to throw your hat
                  into the ring along with
all the others
                  the bleary-eyed commuters
become a titan of industry
                  well not quite a titan :
commuters commune
                  whereas actors lounge
on the sidelines until
                  they are called to perform
they grow lonelier
                  by the day until
they are called to perform
                  and then it suddenly seems
the best job in the world
                  what you were born to do
how could you ever have thought
                  of throwing in the towel
of settling for less
                  in the old nine to five

Well maybe one more audition
                  maybe one more rendition
after all it’s in your blood
                  it’s not addiction
a way of life
                  not an affliction

John Lyons