I'm going to Minnesota and see the seasons change,
The trees turn yellow up along the Iron Range,
The nights turn colder and the cornfield sweet and dry.
The cries of geese across the peaceful sunset of September sky.
It is so good to be back for another season of this show. I can't tell you.
This show is ---- I don't do well without this show. A vacation seems like a good idea at the time, but days go by and you start to notice that you're sleeping a lot and you're sleeping on the couch, with all of the cats, and the tv is on, and around the couch are a lot of dirty dishes, plastic dishes, and empty bean cans. And your teeth feel gummy and your hair is snarly and matted down like a nylon toupee. And you're in the same t-shirt and jeans you were wearing two months ago. You have a peanut butter and spam sandwich in one hand and a nine-iron in the other and you're watching tv and days pass and suddenly you push the cats off your lap an you get up from the couch and you think to yourself, it's time to go back to work. And you take a shower and you put on clean clothes and brush your teeth and comb your hair and here we are, folks. Good to be with you.
Back to the old backstage,
The old dressing room,
Get out the old soft shoes,
And the old costume ---
Walk up the alley
To the old stage door
Just like John Barrymore.
The same old curtains,
The same old sets,
The stagehands standing
Smoking cigarettes.
Hello to Jack
And the backstage crew ---
Good to see you, boys,
What's new?
The same old musicians
Down in the pit
We rehearse the number,
My all-time hit,
With the careless grace
That made my career ---
But what is that face
In the mirror?
Savoir-faire
Savoir-faire
Do your best
For the folks out there.
A houndstooth jacket,
And a fresh handkerchief,
I feel good tonight,
Though my legs are stiff,
And tonight we open
For one more year,
But what is that face in the mirror?
Bring me some makeup
For around the eyes,
And a collagen cream,
I need to moisturize.
Bring me a sunlamp,
I need a tan
Won't someone help
an old man?
Casually
Casually
Smile and wave to the balcony.
The house is full
For the opening show,
I can smell the ladies
In the second row.
Here's my cue
Hit the stage
An old soft shoe
From a bygone age
Shuffle, turn,
And hit my mark,
I can hear them smile
In the dark.
They're leaning forward,
And their toes tap tap,
I got these people
In my lap.
The old soft shoe
The old soft shoe
They're all getting older too
© 1997 by Garrison Keillor