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Apr. 24, 2014 Day #71 Monologue Mania by Janet S. Tiger (c) 2014
I Never Promised You a Chalk Garden
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I Never
Promised You a Chalk Garden
by Janet S. Tiger
© 2014 all rights reserved
by Janet S. Tiger
© 2014 all rights reserved
tigerteam1@gmail.com
CHALKER - (Quiet for
a moment, he holds up a piece of chalk) Firsts. You know, I’ve never done this before, give a
summation in front of a jury. It’s a little nerve-wracking, but here goes. Firsts.
This whole event has been a series of firsts for me. Never been arrested, never had a mug shot, a
body-cavity search. All new things. But I guess that’s part of life, new
things. . I never did graffiti before – never protested
anything. These are all firsts. Some good, some not so pleasant – but I
remember the first time a teacher taught us about the First Amendment.
Mrs. Hendricks, in 4th grade, she made us
memorize a lot of stuff. The Gettysburg
Address, the Preamble, the Bill of Rights.
What a waste of time, I thought then.
But not now. She may be gone –
and all the people who wrote those words may be gone, but those words are still
strong- (quoting, he takes out a piece of paper)
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment
of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or…..(louder) … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances.
That is what I
did. I expressed myself with a piece of
chalk – now I may not remember the first time I used a piece of chalk – I was a
kid. I wrote on the sidewalk, it was
something I did, like walking, talking- you’d don’t remember your first word,
your first step.
But what I did
in front of that bank – I remember. And
I did it because I was mad that no one else seemed to care! My friends lost their house because these
banks did things they should have gone to jail for – unfortunately, you can’t
put a bank in jail. But you can let
people know! (Gets very emphatic) And that’s what I was doing! I was letting the world know what was going
on – and that’s what our forefathers wanted to protect when they wrote these words! They knew that words have power, that’s why
they protected us when we speak, and when we make signs, and use chalk!
(He now takes
the paper and puts it on the floor, takes his chalk and draws a circle.)
And if you
convict me, you will be drawing a chalk-line around the First Amendment.
(He turns to sit down.)
Thank you.
Janet S. Tiger 858-274-9678
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence
Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence
Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
1 comment:
I like this! Another first is defending himself, right?
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