The Spotlight's Fire

“Did they approve the speech?”

“They feel it’s too aggressive.”

“Well then, why didn’t I get the news before today?”

“The board took too long.”

“The board took too long? The board took too long? You know what? I’m just going to pretend I didn’t know that they rejected it.”

“But sir, you can’t just do that. They’re there for a reason.”

“Watch me.”

“Alright. I do have more news.”

“Spill. While we’re young.”

“Alright. The in - person attendance is reaching 500,000. That’s 10x more than we projected. I m-”

“500,000? How in the world did we get those numbers.”

“The live debate must’ve helped.”

“And the board didn’t want me to do that.”

“Alright. The virtual attendance projections tripled in 5 minutes, and-”

“Is my watch showing the correct time?”

“Sorry sir?”

“Is my watch showing the correct time? What are you, deaf?”

“No sir. I have Tinnitus. Certain frequencies are non - audible to me.”

“Oh. Have you told me this before?”

“Yes sir.”

“Oh. Well, I don’t remember. Anyway, is it showing the correct time!?”

“You don’t need to yell sir. And yes, it’s showing the correct time.”

“Then that means that we’re 2 minutes late.”

“Well, it’s just 2 minutes.”

“2 minutes too much. Come on, pick up the pace.”

“Wait up sir!”

“Talk Hannibal. Talk to me. What else?”

“The virtual attendance projections tripled when the in-person attendance quadrupled.”

“Tell me the exact numbers.”

“2,000,000. Wait sir. Don’t stop. We’re almost there.”

“2,000,000? I need to change some talking points. Ask for a redraft of the speech.”

“All the speechwriters are gone. One of them tested positive.”

“Dang COVID.”

“And the board hasn’t approved it.”

“Dang board.”

“And, your mother is here.”

“Dang moth- Wait. Don’t tell her I said that.”

“Yes sir.”

“Stop chuckling. There’s no time for that.”

“Right. Um, can you also fill out a recommendation sir?”

“Recommendation? You’re leaving us?”

“Yes sir.”

“Why? And speak freely.”

“Well sir, I’ve been with you for 10 years, and I haven’t even been given a raise, a bonus check, or even a promotion.”

“Simon. Give Hannibal a raise and a bonus check.”

“Really? Thank you sir!”

“No time for gratitude. Is this the door?”

“Yes sir, but your mother’s in there.”

“Wait, she is?”

The doors swung open. The thick - padded carpet muffled the sound of my dress shoes hitting the carpet. The carpet itself had elaborate designs, that of which seemed like it belonged to an elaborate tapestry. The indentations the chair left behind were the only imperfections. The chairs themselves had been moved to the far walls. The cabinets contained countless glass plates and cups. I turned to the right to the balcony where I would be delivering my speech. 

Then I looked straight ahead. Who else was standing there, but my mom.

“Hannibal. Excuse us please.” She said, her loud and confident voice echoing throughout the room.

I heard the door close behind me, the voices in the hallway being drowned out.

“Have you been studying Rhetorical Devices?” She inquired.

“Just because a speech uses every single rhetoric device known to man doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily good.” I explained.

“Well better safe than sorry.” She blurted.

I heard the doors swing open again. Hannibal poked his head inside the room and announced “They’re ready.”

I nodded and I started walking to the balcony. But I was stopped by my mother’s outstretched hand.

“Give us another 5 minutes. It’s good to keep the crowd waiting.” She proclaimed.

“But ma’am, we are on a tight schedule here, and-”

Mom held up a hand to stop Hannibal from talking. “Last I checked, YOU serve US.”

Hannibal grudgingly nodded and closed the door.

She turned back to me. “You really have to replace him.” She chastised.

“Don’t be silly mom.” I argued. “He’s one of the reasons that we are where we are today.”

I walked to the corner, trying to collect my thoughts and organize them. I needed every single advantage I could get.

“Nervous?” I heard.

I was thinking about making some type of witty remark. But in the end, I just nodded. “I just think that it’s too short. I counted. 389 words. Martin Luther King’s I have a Dream speech was 1,282 words. JFK’s speech getting the U.S in the space race was 2079 words. I mean, if the numbers that Hannibal has are accurate, that means I need to change the speech entirely. I mean, talking to a small crowd is different. Talking to millions, is a whole other league. Plus-”

“Are you Martin Luther King?” She asked.

The question took me off guard. “What? No. I-” 

“Are you JFK?” She asked again.

Again, I was caught off guard. “I’m sorry, but what does this have to do with-”

“Who are you?”

I thought about this for a second. And that second was all it took to realize what she was saying.

“You are Joseph Frinkleton. Do what Joseph can, when Joseph can, and how Joseph wants to do it. Don’t take anything from anyone else. And if you feel that 375 words is enough, then let it be enough.” She advised, her usual no-nonsense exterior stripping away to reveal her soft and kind interior.

And for a moment, I thought I saw something tugging at her mouth.

A smile.

“Now go on. Don’t wait too long.” She snapped. “Oh, and if you don’t want the jacket, then tell me.”

She walked out of the room. 

I looked at the suit I was wearing. It belonged to my late father. I’d never seen my father wear it. But I could see why he liked it, with the red so bright in the photographs that he stood out, like on in a million. Now, however, the red had faded considerably. It had that musky aroma.

I was considering taking it off, when I realized something. My father, who started the movement, wore this jacket to the first speech he delivered. 

It was only fitting that I wear it to the speech that would eventually make or break this entire campaign.

I walked up to the balcony. I saw the ocean of supporters of the Defend Mary movement standing on the ground, the wet grass seemingly unnoticeable to them. Volunteers racing around the grounds to make people socially distanced.

Their yells of support eased my nerves a little, though it was mostly muffled by their masks. 

My eyes went up a bit further, looking at the cameras that would be live streaming it on various social media platforms. 

Silence fell, faster than the drizzle of rain.

All eyes turned to me. Expectant. In desperate need for support.

I too was in desperate need of support. As soon as I stepped foot on the balcony, a weight suddenly came crashing down on me, locking my movements.

I cast aside the hindrance for now.

And then, I delivered the speech.

“Right. Everyone, thank you for coming. I’ll try to keep this short. I know this has been a long and hard road, to get to this point. And we aren’t even close to done. But we will accomplish the feat that the great Mary Frinkleton had set out to do, who was willing to stop at nothing. And who, in the end, was cast to the side, forgotten for decades to come.”

“And for anybody who doesn’t know the great deeds from a great person, let me clarify your minds. 30 years ago, when our once great nation was being held in the iron shackled hands of a ruthless dictator, 10 people refused to bow down, and instead, they rose up, ridding this country of that ruthless presence from the halls of our Nation’s house. They changed this country, and guided us into this country’s golden age. They were regarded as heroes. They ARE heroes.”

“But heroes are also humans. And humans can make mistakes.”

“In this instance, they rid Mary of her presence in the movement, all because she was in their way. A hindrance if you will. And our country was built on our foundation. That is why our country has been labeled ONCE great. And for decades and decades and decades, we have been in the shadows on that perilous fact.”

“Well, no longer.”

“Instead, we shall rid our country of that preposterous memory. How, you may ask. Well, the first step to cast our mistakes away is acceptance. Through acceptance, we can eventually engross our nation in a spotlight.”

“But, this time, rather than a false spotlight, a true one. One that will give light to our path as we march along into the history books. One that will give light to our future generations as they look upon our past, to head into our future, stronger than ever before.”

“And we will need your help. We will need all the help you can give. And the way to help us is simple: Spread the word.”

“That way, our acceptance of our mistakes are more widespread. And it will make our spotlight stronger.”

“And if we never give up, if we never, ever, surrender to those who suppressed Mary Frinkleton. And if prevent future treacheries from taking place.”

“That spotlight’s flame shall never be extinguished.”

The crowd was silent for a few seconds. That was the slowest moment of my life. My mind had enough time to run through dozens of questions, discarding and saving a few of them.

Was I too loud?

Was I too soft?

Did nobody understand what I meant by “That spotlight’s flame shall never be extinguished.”?

Was everyone stuck on the appearance of my jacket?

I was stuck on one: How big was my impact?

I waited patiently for some sort of recognition from the crowd.

Nothing.

Mustering up some courage, I went back inside, holding my head up high despite the 1 ton weight attached to it. The weight that hit me on the balcony strangely ceased to exist.

I closed the balcony door and took a deep, shuddering breath.

I had failed. The one moment that counted, the one moment that mattered most throughout this whole campaign . . .

The door burst open, and in came the sounds of hurried chatting, along with Hannibal’s nervous head.

“Nobody knows what happened. The team is getting it fixed immediately. They have a sneaking suspicion that the calibration messed it up.”

I looked at Hannibal and motioned with my eyes for him to get out. 

He seemed to understand my agonized state, as he quietly closed the door.

I looked at my shoes and ran my fingers through my sandy hair, the typically smooth tough gone, replaced by something more rough.

Yet something else that I hadn’t achieved . . .

The sounds of the hallway reached my ears.

Furiously, “Hannibal, just leave me alone. I’m already-”

My mother snapped “Why didn’t you check to make sure the microphone was on?”

I stopped my hands. “What?”

She scoffed. “The microphone didn’t work. They heard zip.”

My mind ran through what Hannibal had just mentioned a few moments earlier.

After I processed that, I let out one big show of emotion:

Laughter.

And why?

Because I knew that my speech deliverance had already been screwed up before. 

And I couldn’t possibly screw it up again.

Muttering filled the room. Hannibal appeared around my mom and assured us. “They think they got it fixed. But if it isn’t, then come back inside and we’ll take care of the speech another time.”

I nodded. My mom saw my expression, my confident expression, and went outside to leave me alone. Hannibal closed the door, the muttering stopping immediately, almost like somebody hit the mute button.

I got up faster than a spring, and walked to the balcony. 

As I rested my hands on the guardrail, I noticed that my mind was clearer. More spacious. 

And with that, I delivered my speech.

“Right. Everyone, thank you for coming. I’ll try to keep this short. I know this has been a long and hard road, to get to this point. And we aren’t even close to done. But we will accomplish the feat that the great Mary Frinkleton had set out to do, who was willing to stop at nothing. And who, in the end, was cast to the side, forgotten for decades to come.”

“And for anybody who doesn’t know the great deeds from a great person, let me clarify your minds. 30 years ago, when our once great nation was being held in the iron shackled hands of a ruthless dictator, 10 people refused to bow down, and instead, they rose up, ridding this country of that ruthless presence from the halls of our Nation’s house. They changed this country, and guided us into this country’s golden age. They were regarded as heroes. They ARE heroes.”

“But heroes are also humans. And humans can make mistakes.”

“In this instance, they rid Mary of her presence in the movement, all because she was in their way. A hindrance if you will. And our country was built on our foundation. That is why our country has been labeled ONCE great. And for decades and decades and decades, we have been in the shadows on that perilous fact.”

“Well, no longer.”

“Instead, we shall rid our country of that preposterous memory. How, you may ask. Well, the first step to cast our mistakes away is acceptance. Through acceptance, we can eventually engross our nation in a spotlight.”

“But, this time, rather than a false spotlight, a true one. One that will give light to our path as we march along into the history books. One that will give light to our future generations as they look upon our past, to head into our future, stronger than ever before.”

“And we will need your help. We will need all the help you can give. And the way to help us is simple: Spread the word.”

“That way, our acceptance of our mistakes are more widespread. And it will make our spotlight stronger.”

“And if we never give up, if we never, ever, surrender to those who suppressed Mary Frinkleton. And if prevent future treacheries from taking place.”

“That spotlight’s flame shall never be extinguished.”