Only in Abilene

“O heat, dry up my brains! Tears seven times salt, burn out the sense and virtue of mine eye!”  -  Hamlet, Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5

Inadvertently, our theme for Summerfest 2014, “Catching Fire; Discover and Ignite Your Spark” was a perfect theme for our West Texas adventure in Abilene at McMurry University. The heat, the heat that chased us around relentlessly!  It was worrisome.  How would y’all react to a building without air conditioning?  You guys were amazing, understanding and incredibly flexible.  Thank you so much for being a part of SummerFest 2014, especially our new attendees.

Jenae Glanton just wrote a really great blog for TTN about finding only one word to change your life and I find myself these last few days pondering what my word would be. If you know me, then it should be no surprise that the first place I went was for the joke. Many jokes floated through my mind, most of them related to 30 Rock and Mean Girls, and after they cleared one word was left: content.

Last year was the worst year I’ve ever had as a teacher. It was a year of putting out fire after fire, of displeased advanced students, troubling theatre 1 classes, and the most difficult challenge ever: a willful 3 year old. I was ready to throw in the towel. Then a few rays of light shone down on my misery: I got to travel with my husband and his students to NYC and see great shows; my son started asking for bedtime stories and stopped screaming at us when he was upset, and SummerFest in Abilene. I was so, so happy in Abilene. I love serving as K-12 High School At Large and being on a committee with some of the funniest people you will ever meet. Thank you for letting me be a part of K-12. It has consistently been one of the best things going for me.

Now for a funny story that coined the title of this article! Saturday evening a large group of us got gussied up in costumes for midnight showing of a certain cult classic film. Justin Elliott won the costume contest before the movie started, and it was a well-deserved victory. The film itself was a disaster; they chose the wrong input. Still, fun was had! When we left, quite early in the morning, several of us felt that a jaunt to the IHOP was needed. Four of us were in our costumes and when we walked in, silence fell. Heads held high, we walked through the dining room, only to collapse in laughter at our booth.

The stares started to worry us after a few minutes. Would they ask us to leave? Then, the manager walked over and the fear really kicked in. Aw, man. I just wanted some pancakes. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Excuse me, folks. Several of the staff was wondering if they could take pictures with you.”

We could not have had a better time. It was awesome, and at the end of the night the manager insisted on taking 30% off our tickets. I believe it was Cody Moore who started the “only in Abilene” in our group. It stuck.

Content. I left Abilene feeling content, happy and relaxed. This will be my word this year and I will remember it if the demons from last school year attempt to pursue me. I will find contentment in every class, every show and every moment of this upcoming year.

See you at Theatrefest!

Victoria Perry
K-12 Committee

High School At Large