Prompt 48 Escalating Humiliation

Brooke Shaden

This week’s prompt is An Escalating Humiliation

I am going to share a personal story by way of example but you do not have to write about my experience. I would rather you write about your personal experiences with embarrassment. You say something foolish and when trying to regain dignity/composure you end up making things worse. This is something I feel we can all relate to. You don’t have to write nonfiction. I understand that for some this topic might be too painful.

When I was a child I wanted to be a singer. I was quite the little mimic and I was able to adopt a satisfactory speaking voice from a Hollywood actress but I could not emulate singing voices. I had a knack for remembering songs and intuiting lyrics but my singing was comically robotic. No matter how hard I tried to let go I just couldn’t produce human emotion. I practiced daily, rigorously and like most children in the pursuit of a dream I didn’t consider proclivity. I figured I just had to do and it would happen. In the 3^rd grade my drama/music class held auditions for the school play. Everyone would participate but you had to try out for the lead singing roles. My decision was totally impromptu the teacher asked “Who wants to sing?” and my hand shot up. Now normally I could remember the lyrics but even with them in front of me I couldn’t “remember” them at all. The class was already giggling before I even opened my mouth (which took quite a long time for me to do). When I started to sing it was much worse, my little robotic voice forcing its way over the laughter and jeers of my classmates. The teacher told me I could stop but no apparently I couldn’t I had to finish out the song. That was bad enough of course but the teacher pulled me to the side after and told me she was going to put me in the very back of the chorus and instructed me to lip synch the whole performance. I was never allowed to sing in class again! I was also forbidden to participate in PE because of my poor coordination (didn’t I need PE to help that?).

Birthday (Audio)

Credit: Complejo of DeviantArt

What do I want?

As a child the blanks were easy to fill

There was always some toy, some article

Some vacuous need easily sated

A want was such a simple thing

I think I’ll have a beach ball

A set of pastels, a guitar to recount

The erosion of my innocence

*

I never received anything on my list

You understood my penchant

For poisons all too well mother

Understood that what is truly important

Is not the thought but the perversion

If I get her something

She’s not thought to mention

She will feel all the more relieved

That daughter of mine is so forgetful

Heaven help the poor girl

She cannot possibly know

The persuasions of her heart

That heart which is still so new

Why she’s probably written down

The first thing that’s popped into her head!

*

I resent that question

What do you want?

It’s not about me, this birthday

I’ve no right to celebrate in peace

I must make a spectacle of myself

For the benefit of others

For those younger than myself

Who still look forward

To the freedom of infirmity

*

People take such pleasure

In unnerving one another

If you succumbed to my requests

I wouldn’t be sufficiently surprised

You should have seen her face

When I handed her that pig’s heart!

The squeal of terror delight

Look how she turns it over and over

Her mute, bloody hands tremulous

(of what use it is I cannot imagine)

It’s no approximation dear one

That is a genuine pig’s heart

Strait from the butcher

So fresh it still echoes

With the hysteria of departure!

*

I have written you a note too

Right there beside the quip

About unwanted hair growth

And accelerated weight gain

(looks like you’re right on target!)

A card just wouldn’t be the same

If you didn’t sacrifice a few tears

*

Birthdays are for sadists

I’d rather spend the day selfishly

Eating gratuitous amounts of sweets

Making love, watching television

Perhaps dinner in the evening

Home-cooked and uninterrupted

By cued, overworked waiters

And their synthetic confections

Uninterrupted by song or applause

Just a simple dinner eaten

Without any concern

Whatsoever for my health

*

This is meant to be sarcastic so I hope you won’t take it seriously. I am making fun of how we like to scare people and make them cry on their birthdays. Personally I like birthdays and still get excited though I prefer to keep them very simple. My actual birthday is November 8^th

This is for Poet’s United

Audio can be found here I tried to put a little drama in it but I am not an actress haha

http://vocaroo.com/i/s0p745SXGfxG