Listen To Your Mother
I got a text message from my friend Ciaran letting me know that she was a co producer for Listen to Your Mother OC (for you non-locals that’s Orange County). I texted her back with: Congratulations, have fun. And then (as Ciaran is wont to do) I was informed that I should audition and she made reference to an old blog post and how it would be great for the show.
I follow orders well and auditioned for the show, was informed that I was selected as a cast member and then proceeded to freak out. I didn’t actually know what LTYM was going to be about. I didn’t know who else auditioned or how bad it would suck. I just knew that because I’d been chosen that it would suck.
I clearly have some issues that need to be worked out.
This weekend I showed up at Ciaran’s house not knowing what to expect. I’d seen the list of women who would be there and many of them are fantastic writers but I didn’t see a story. I saw bloggers and blogs can get monotonous. Too much self reflection is good for no one. Too much motherhood is just plain dull.
Then there was a rehearsal. I heard the other women recite their best stories. They weren’t all about motherhood. They were about relationships and disasters. There were stories about class, race and privilege. There were decisions made to walk away from everything and other decisions where you walk toward it all. There was mine, which is very light and touches on aspects of motherhood that I’m pretty sure I’ve beat into the ground on this site here.
I loved hearing from these women. I loved what they had to say and how they said it. I loved their accents and their whispers and their confessional tone. I sat and listened was sad that there wasn’t more.
LTYM OC cast
So if you’re near Santa Ana on the afternoon of April 27th I can wholeheartedly recommend Listen To Your Mother. I’ll be there and I’ll be talking but only for 3 minutes. Then I’ll be listening and enjoying because it will be so very enjoyable.
