Endings and Beginnings

This is a song about a couple of adult people who have spent
Oh, quite a long time together
'Til one day, one of 'em gets restless and decides to leave
Whether it's the man or woman who left is unimportant
It's a breakup
And it's a lovely marriage of words and music
Written by Stephen Sondheim

Some presumably extemporaneous poetry spoken by Frank Sinatra before a recording of Send in the Clowns.

I got the news this week that one of my favorite improv groups I'm part of, a practice group, is ending. It was the kind of group I always assumed would be there, and it's sad to see it go on hiatus (which is technically what's happening), but this hiatus feels like the end of a TV show. It feels like "We're closed." or "I think so ... Probably ... Maybe."

I got the news a few weeks ago that one of my favorite improv groups to watch is ending/evolving. So much so that their website is also gone.

By my estimation, my current and first conservatory team has around 10 shows left. We just had some membership changes.

Things end, and things change, and things fall apart, and centers can't hold; falcons and falconers miscommunicate. Gyres be widening, man.

When these things happen, and they do, change is part of life. I think it's easy to get stuck in mourning mode. Mourning is a good, normal, and healthy part of the process. But if we go back up to Send in the Clowns and while the song lyrically conveys a sense of loss and a disconnect between two people, it's his characterization through what he says and how he says it that make the meaning.

This is why, for me, right now, the most useful skill in improv is Framing. Yes, listening is how I get the information, and yes, anding is how I contribute to the information, but it's an underrated superpower to be able to help decide what the scene or your life is about. I didn't stop drinking; I became sober. I didn't just start doing improv; I stopped telling myself no all the time. Take us out, Mitch Hedberg.

I like to drink red wine. This girl says, "Doesn't red wine give you a headache?" "Yeah, eventually! But the first and the middle parts are amazing." I'm not gonna stop doing something 'cause of what's gonna happen at the end. "Mitch, you want an apple?" "No, eventually it'll be a core."
- Mitch Hedberg

So, yeah, things end, so enjoy them for what they are while you have them, and for what they turn into.