by Petra Bagnardi

Many lives are saved in a movie theatre.
Take the boy who is always late,
but always on time for the opening scene;
his father left never to return,
so the boy escaped the painful home.
In the shiny black and white close-ups of his favorite actress,
he finds now hours of consolation.
Take the old woman with too many memories;
the pictures on the screen help her make sense of the turmoil.
Take now the young man and the lady,
they are seated on opposite sides of the theatre;
they haven’t spoken in years –
but the stories of mended friendships show them the path.
See the filmmakers and the storytellers and the musicians;
their minds brimming with ideas,
their notebooks heavy with words –
they dive into plot-holes and pick up loose threads,
so the movie lights will never fade.
See the girl who always, stubbornly, stays until the credits end;
for she wants to read and honor all the women,
who worked in the picture.

Image by Andreas Glöckner via Pixabay