We met at the assigned location.
At the hour of our meeting,
there were few witnesses,
as was the plan.

He set up the camera
and I set up the scripts.
I had nothing memorized
(as per usual)
and when he said
he was ready all I had to do
was bury my head
into the words and start shouting them out.

“Maybe you could be a little more natural,”
He suggested between takes.
I took to directions
like a horse to electricity.
I thought he liked me the way I was!

After about six attempts at a piece
we would move on
to a different script.
In this way was daylight burned.
It was a quiet park
on an early morning,
but the later it got,
the more people rumbled in
wondering what we were doing.
We were making magic, baby.
It was brisk enough
that there were never many crowds.

Long hours passed
but not enough for my throat
to crap out.
It wasn’t cold enough
for the water fountain
to have iced over
so I could replenish at will.

Eventually, he folded his tripod
and I collected loose sheets
and we went and got a late lunch.
We talked about how it went
and what we’d do
with such awesome raw material.

“I should be able to cut these together
in no time!” He said.
There would be no stopping us.
We parted company.
It was an exciting opportunity.
It was the kind of thing
that could make a life.

It was a decade ago, I think.

I wonder how it’s going.