Why can’t some people move on in life?
The young woman lay gracefully on the surface of the empty stage. Small particles of dust floated softly in the air. The gentle beam of stage light illuminated the young woman’s delicate features. But instead of a handsome prince hovering above to awaken this woman from her sleep, a weary and worn-out detective was there in his place.
As he examined the cold and unresponsive body, he noted that the woman still had a faint sign of a pulse. But no matter how vigorously he shook her, she remained as still as a stone.
As the detective looked around, he found himself in the midst of a 2-dimensional jungle. The large canopy of cardboard leaves casted dramatic and jagged shadows on the ground. And after peering behind the backdrop of long dangling vines, he came face to face with a majestic lion.
But before the detective could draw his pistol in defense, the ferocious beast stood alarmingly on its hind legs. To the detective’s bewilderment, a brightly painted face emerged from the creature’s open and unzipped mouth.
“Greetings Detective, my name is Nabu! How may I be of service to you?” purred the slender actor coyly.
“Oh! you scared me there!” exclaimed the flustered detective as he tried to catch his breath. After taking 2 desperate puffs from his inhaler, the detective finally asked, “What were this woman’s final words before she was frozen in time?”
Nabu looked down with pity at the young actress. He solemnly whispered, “She said the only forbidden word during improvisational theatre. She said ‘No’. As soon as those words leapt off her lips, she was helplessly frozen in frame and reduced to being merely a prop in our show. Four hours later, she is still stuck and unable to move on…”
Life is a lot like improvisational theatre. Every single person is an actor that contributes to the unfolding and unpredictable narrative. So long as each person is willing to trust and adapt to every twist and turn the live performance brings, they will continue to be a part of the ongoing story. But those who say “No” will unfortunately be frozen in time. They cannot be roused; not even with true love’s first kiss.
