she is skilled in the wiles and guises of the trade in a split second, her eyes went from dilated and wet to bright and cheery, her drooping demeanor sprung to life. no time for worries or tears, painted on the smiles, and she's off!

bouncing and laughing on stage, she put up a world class act.

as the show draws to a close, and laughter hits its climatic high, she stopped in the fly of the stage, looked around, listened closely, to the easy chuckles and smiles shared by them in the crowd, and wept, hidden behind face paints, curly hair, and a bright red nose.

she brought laugher, but admist it, as she stood in the bright spotlight, shining like a halo around her, she felt cold to the bone, like she was the only one breaking inside.