I feel the wood of the bench digging into the backs of my legs. The stage has green curtains that drape down on a smooth oak floor. Silence filled the room. From backstage I wait for my turn, but I’m not even sure if I want to go anymore. Butterflies fill my stomach. It is almost a tingling scared feeling. Even though I’m not onstage, my heart is beating out of my chest. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. I can hear the laughter from the audience, and the pressure builds. I swallow and whisper to myself that everything is going to be ok, but my head keeps coming up with ways to be scared that something will go wrong. I am sitting here shaking, and biting my nails. I think back to the morning when I was practicing for this night.
The theater had been nearly empty then, and I was sitting on the stage practicing the song over and over again, matching the lyrics to the strums of my guitar. As my fingers slid across the guitar, it all came so easily to me because of all the times I had practiced. I wrote the song, and it was called “Frozen.” It is special for me to perform because it is the first piece that I have ever composed. The words seem to roll off my tongue smoothly. I think about how confident I was in myself and how sure I was that I was going to do well. I remembered I felt really excited for that night, almost like I wanted the time to just fade away, and I begin performing for real.
A name is called to go onstage and I realize that it’s mine. To stop myself from thinking about the past I shake my head. The announcement makes me shiver. I inch out of my seat and my steps feel as heavy as bricks on the floor. Taking a deep breath, I slowly grab my guitar, get on the stage and begin to perform “Frozen.” For one second I look right at the crowd, swallow, then begin. Once I start performing I feel so happy as I sing my song. My words are coming out clear and crisp while I sing. All my friends are smiling, so I start to sway to the music. Nearly everyone is humming “Frozen.” I know that I am doing well as I perform. In this moment, I know nothing can go wrong. Once I finish performing, I can’t wipe the smile off my face.
I happily hop off the stage and run to my friends and hug them so tight. They are smiling really big and say that they are so proud of me. “You did such a good job,” they say and I can’t help but beam and look delighted. I knew I could perform, but I was afraid and
scared that something bad would happen. But I was wrong, I feel like a firework lighting up the sky. I’m so happy as I sit back on the chair on which I was once so nervous. In this moment, it is clear to me that I have gained confidence in myself. Now I know that if I work hard, I can achieve my goals. This is a lesson, which will not only be used in this moment but also remembered for the rest of my life. I have a sense of accomplishment as my fellow campers trample out of the theater once the talent show ends. We enter the dark night. This night will be a night that I will never forget.