🎭 Standing Ovation at the Start

I stepped on stage. The crowd went wild.
Not bad for a barely gestated child.
They roared with joy, threw roses too —
I hadn’t even cried, just passed on through.

They cheered for triumphs I hadn’t earned,
For bridges not built, and lessons unlearned.
I gave a nod with my undeveloped neck,
Gracious as ever. What the heck?

Applause before the act? That’s rich.
No script, no spotlight switch.
Just me — unformed and unprepared —
Being praised for not being scared.

Success was a concept I never met.
Failure? Oh, I dodged that debt.
No heartbreak, bills, or boring chores,
No taxes, no therapy, no closing doors.

I reversed my regrets with flair and ease,
Unloved a lover, caught a cold breeze.
I whispered goodbye before saying hello,
Left the stage before stealing the show.

I gave back wisdom. Returned my age.
Unwrote my story. Undid the page.
I left my job, then left my name.
Forgot the rules, unlearned the game.

And just when it all felt perfectly clear,
I slipped right back into neutral gear.
No pulse, no pain, no inner strife —
A graceful pirouette out of life.

At the end of ends, I curled up tight.
No fanfare, no final fight.
Just a faint blue hum and a soft, dim light.
Home again, before I knew the night.

So here’s to starting at the end —
A backwards fall we can’t defend.
They say “life’s a stage.” Well, here’s the twist:
I was never cast.
I never missed.