A new year. 2017 wasn’t the greatest year for me, though I suppose it could have been worse. The play I spent much of the year writing is stuck on my computer unlikely to ever see the light of day due to music rights issues. I learned a lot about that subject in 2017. It seems like everyone in my family had health issues last year – Sammi got a concussion, Piper’s hair fell out (though I guess that started in 2016), Sharon had a very serious eye infection… Rachel was okay though there were definitely non-health related challenges for her too. And of course, hanging like a dark cloud over everything was the fact that our government is lead by a criminal with no character, less smarts and no idea of what it means to be president.
2017 did have some good moments, too. I became a member of the Dramatists Guild, another step on my journey toward publishing one or more of the plays I’ve written. I directed a wonderful production of Charlotte’s Web for Young Footliters. I did a couple of acting workshops that were very well received. And I’ve begun work on my next play which will be presented in the fall.
The rest of my family had a good year in a lot of ways too. Rachel excelled in high school, including Chemistry which she never imagined she would enjoy. Sammi is also doing really well in school, getting a 4.0. She also made a number of new friends, became a huge Sabrina Carpenter fan, and generally speaking really matured this past year. Piper explored some caves with Girl Scouts and continued to be the wacky fun kid we all love. I took Piper and Sammi on a camping trip and we hiked part of the Appalachian Trail, which was a lot of fun. Sharon took the girls to the Women’s March in Des Moines, which was an awesome experience. She also directed a play, wrote a lot, read many many books, and generally speaking was the glue that held us all together.
So some good, some bad… and a dark cloud hovering over all of us.
I don’t really do New Year Resolutions anymore. But I do have some goals for 2018. So I guess they are sort of resolutions.
- Finish writing and then direct my new play.
- Expand theatre education opportunities for kids in our area.
- Take more steps forward in getting one or more of my plays published.
All of those seem doable. Happy New Year! Here’s hoping 2018 is better than 2017!
Kazoo Theatre Academy 