first year - Feb. 13, 2014 - Feb. 13, 2015
I've continued with a monologue a day until the spirit moves me to stop, so if you have any ideas for a monologue you want me to write, please let me know at tigerteam1@gmail.com.
If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues-
To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - click here.
For a list of the blurbs from each day, click here There are now over 500!
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If you'd like to write your own monologues, I happen to have a book for that -
How to Write a Monologue in 10 Easy Lessons (Well, maybe not so easy)
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this site. Wishing you much success!
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Monologue Mania Day #536 by Janet S. Tiger Aug. 2, 2015
For more monologues from The Book of Teas, check out
Days # 15, 41-53, 69, 84, 96, 105, 118, 156, 173, 175-8, 181-5, 269, 331, 452, 506
Days # 15, 41-53, 69, 84, 96, 105, 118, 156, 173, 175-8, 181-5, 269, 331, 452, 506
The
Good Book of Tea
(T comes out holding a thick book, yes, she still has a Southern accent)
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(for The Book of Teas)
A monologue by Janet S. Tiger (c) all rights reserved
A monologue by Janet S. Tiger (c) all rights reserved
tigerteam1@gmail.com
Preacher
Jackson was more than handsome, he was very wise.
That
day, I fell in love not just with him, but with everything he loved, which was the Bible.
He
introduced us to The Book of Job.
Now
some might think this is heavy for children, but not the way he taught it.
When
he gave us the candy, after we had run off some of our child energy, he then handed
out a thin book, no bigger than the readers we used to learn how to read in
first grade.
It
was a paperback, and it had a picture of Jesus on the front.
But
first he told us not to read it - he had a question.
Who
wants to be rich?
Everyone
raised their hand.
And
who wants to have a big happy family?
Again,
hands up.
Okay,
now we can read.
And
we discovered the sadness and glory that was Job.
After
we got through all the horror, he made us put the book down, even though there
were still two pages left.
Who
wants to be Job? he asked.
Not
a hand.
That's
funny, you all wanted to be Job a few minutes ago.
No
one wants to be Job, I blurted out.
Well,
of course you all did.
The
protests were vehement.
Who
wants to have all that misery?
But
Job started out with lots of money and a wonderful family - remember?
A
light was starting to shine in my brain.
You
all wanted to be rich, as I recall. And have a life - just like Job's
started.
The
concept of this dilemma spread through the class like a visible ripple.
You could see everyone struggling with the concept.
He
let us think.
It's
good what you're doing now - you are - here's a fancy word for you -
cogitating. That means thinkin hard.
And
that is what the Bible is for.
When
someone asks you what you want, it's a good idea to think about your answer for
awhile.
Why
do you think I brought you this book? You are young, why should you have
to worry about such things? Because I think even children can learn to
think about the Bible - which is just another way of saying think about their
lives.
And
here's somethin you need to know about Job - we are all Job.
There
was almost an audible gasp from the class.
Even
our regular teacher, Miz Gillespie, gasped. I could see
that she, too, was spellbound by this handsome preacher.
In
our lives, we have great riches - you all sit here and have a school and a
church and clothing and food - in other parts of the world, you would be
considered very rich.
And
yet, even now, here, some of you are going through great pain - you have
already learned what it means to lose - maybe someone you love, maybe a
pet....At this, several of the children started to cry a little. For a
moment, even at that age, I knew others in that class were in pain they did not
share.
But
everyone, at some time, faces troubles that are so big, and they are comin like
the balls of hail in a thunderstorm, that you have no idea what to do.
And
just when you think - how could anythin worse happen - it happens.
Somethin else horrible.
Your
car breaks down on your way to an interview for a job you really need to pay
the bills so your family can eat. Or money so your children can go to a doctor.
And
then, just when you are thinking you would like to talk to your oldest friend, she
calls you, and you are so happy to hear her voice because they will truly
understand what you are going through and they will run over and help…… and you
find that friend is movin away, and that is when you wonder - when will this
stop?
And
that, my young friends, is what God is for.
And
that's when he had us read the last pages, where Job's faith in God pays off -
Job has his riches restored, he gets a new family, and through it all, his
devotion is unwavering.
Mesmerized,
we listened to this man, who had opened our eyes to something far greater than
our own problems.
There
will be good times, and bad times - everyone is Job sometime - but when you
believe there is more than just you - when you have God to turn to - even if no
one else is there - you are not alone.
I
remember looking around the class. For a moment, the secrets were written
on faces, almost as if there was a light shining on them, revealing the
truth. Preacher Jackson was right, some of us were Job already.
What
were these hidden pains? It wasn't until years later that I would learn
what some of them were that day - the boy whose brother would beat him if he
didn't do the brother's chores – a girl who's father drank, and used her as a
wife because her mother died in childbirth. The story of Job lived for
me, and after that, I read the Bible, like a book, and with my heart. It
was not Gone With The Wind - but I grew to love it in a different way.
Gone
With the Wind was only partly true - I knew that as a child.
I
never felt that the Negroes, sorry, African Americans, of that time ever wanted
to stay as slaves. Even at age 10, I knew that couldn't be true.
But the Bible, with all its crazy, was in a different way, true. Preacher Jackson had opened that door for me.
But the Bible, with all its crazy, was in a different way, true. Preacher Jackson had opened that door for me.
Here you go.....enjoy yourself...this is truly a good book...
(She hands the book to the other person, then turns to leave, stops, looks back, listens and smiles)
What a good question! What happened to the preacher? It appeared that Preacher Jackson not only taught the Bible, he lived it.
It turned out he and Miz Gillespie had a torrid affair, even though
the preacher was married with seven children.
But
this was something I did not learn until years later, and it in no way affected
my love of the Bible, as it was clear that a man that handsome was going to break
some hearts.
(She smiles in her memory, then walks off slowly as the light dims on the scene)
Janet S. Tiger 858-736-6315
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
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