Parting the Heavy Velvet Curtain,

she steps away from the stove where the rice is simmering and onto the stage. The highly polished wooden floors echo as she takes each practiced step. Pound pound pound. Snap snap snap. She steps into the center and pauses. The lights are blinding and she cannot see her audience. Up above there are beams and rafters, ropes and electrical cords. Gazing upward, she clears her throat, and cautiously announces, "Tonight's dinner is roast pork, rice, buttered vegetables, and rolls." She holds her hand over her eyes to block some of the light and peers one last time at the audience-she-cannot-see. God, I hope I've prepared enough. She turns on her unpolished heel and pound pound pounds back to the kitchen, cozy with its ruffled gingham curtains.