A speculative mind

  What was it like to grow up as a child in the 90s? How about the 1940’s? Thinking about a child growing up in each different decade, conjures up images in my mind. But that is all they are: images. I was a child in the 1960’s. I can tell you what it felt like to be growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, but what it felt like to me is not what the history books remember. History will tell you the 60’s was about the Viet Nam War, civil rights, and the space race. The 70’s was Disco and Watergate. I remember being aware of all of those things, but to me this era was about finding time to play with my friends, something I probably share with a child of any decade. It was about navigating the social intricacies of school.   It was about the Beatles, Three Dog Night, The Moody Blues, The Animals, Jefferson Airplane. It was Bullwinkle, the Wonderful World of Color, and Ed Sullivan. There are things that a kid pays attention to that the grown-ups don’t. Then there are things the adults ...

  I enjoy doing community theater, but with Covid and other life events, it has been five years since I have been on stage. That is about to change as I am in a production of The Tempest in October. I love Shakespeare, so it was a good one with which to get back on the train. But I had some niggling concerns going in. It has been five years, and I am five years older. Would my older brain still be able to memorize lines as easily as I had in the past? Was my voice up to the challenge of projecting on stage? The memorization has gone okay, but the voice has been an issue. The voice must be trained. Like an athlete that trains their body for a sport, the voice needs practice. The muscles have to get in shape, in particular, the muscles of the diaphragm, which are not used as much in normal speech. My director keeps telling me, “louder” and he is right. My voice is not quite there yet, but it is getting there. The character I play is Gonzalo, and I have a confession to make. Despit...