Personal Narrative-Stairs
Three stairs. Three steps up. Frozen, I stood there, staring at them. It’s not that hard to walk up three stairs, just do it! My nerves nailed me to the auditorium floor. The thought of singing a solo in front of an audience and a judge made my heart pound, hands quake, knees shake, and stomach flip. My choir director, Ms. Ploof, prepared me well for the singing portion of the contest, but failed to warn me about these horrible nerves. Seconds passed. Then a minute went by, and I still stood there. With everything in me, I forced my nerves away as I pulled my right leg off of the ground to make my first step.
Stair one. I can do this.
Stair two. Just breathe. I am ready.
Stair three. Go out there and sing like you have never sung before.
When I reached the top of the stairs, my internal pep talk eased my nerves just enough for me to manage a deep breath. Breathe in. One, two, three, four. Breathe out. One, two, three, four. As the breath escaped my lips, my throat became dry like sandpaper. Regret flooded over me. I thought about bringing my water bottle with me, but made a last minute decision not to. For a moment, I considered running back down the stairs to find water. It would have bought me time to …show more content…
Uh-oh. I’m not ready. I can’t do this. What was I thinking! All at once, my brain went empty. Everything I practiced; my song, the lyrics, the notes, the introductory sentence. It all slipped away. With a racing heart, shallow breathing, and sweating palms, I looked to Ms. Ploof for help. She gave me a small encouraging nod as if she could read my mind. I shut my eyes and imagined myself back in the choir room with Ms. Ploof. Singing the solfege and doing my breathing exercises. The familiar tapping of the piano keys rang through my brain; my voice accompanied it. It felt so normal, so comforting. I took one last breath. Breathe in. One, two, three, four. Breathe out. One, two, three, four. As I exhaled, I could feel my nerves melting
Stair one. I can do this.
Stair two. Just breathe. I am ready.
Stair three. Go out there and sing like you have never sung before.
When I reached the top of the stairs, my internal pep talk eased my nerves just enough for me to manage a deep breath. Breathe in. One, two, three, four. Breathe out. One, two, three, four. As the breath escaped my lips, my throat became dry like sandpaper. Regret flooded over me. I thought about bringing my water bottle with me, but made a last minute decision not to. For a moment, I considered running back down the stairs to find water. It would have bought me time to …show more content…
Uh-oh. I’m not ready. I can’t do this. What was I thinking! All at once, my brain went empty. Everything I practiced; my song, the lyrics, the notes, the introductory sentence. It all slipped away. With a racing heart, shallow breathing, and sweating palms, I looked to Ms. Ploof for help. She gave me a small encouraging nod as if she could read my mind. I shut my eyes and imagined myself back in the choir room with Ms. Ploof. Singing the solfege and doing my breathing exercises. The familiar tapping of the piano keys rang through my brain; my voice accompanied it. It felt so normal, so comforting. I took one last breath. Breathe in. One, two, three, four. Breathe out. One, two, three, four. As I exhaled, I could feel my nerves melting