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PUSHING THE ENVELOPE
MAIN POINT
The worst of times are often the best of times for discovering the
depth of our relationships. In this sketch, we hear from a woman who is struggling to find
a birthday card to send to her recently widowed friend. Up until now, their friendship has
been easy and their visits enjoyable. Now what? How should she handle this delicate
situation? What would a good friend do? What would Jesus do?
CHARACTERIZATION
A woman, mid-30s to early 40s. She starts out a bit light-hearted, as if to
avoid thinking about the painful situation. Her relationship with her friend Sharon has
always been easy, perhaps a bit "surfacey." As the monologue moves on, she
becomes more pained and empathetic toward her friend's situation. In the end, she realizes
she wants to "push the envelope" and really be a friend by helping to carry the
pain.
DIRECTOR'S NOTES
1) The best choice for staging this sketch is to have a
card rack and cards for the actress to interact with and move around. She tells a story to
the audience while she is in the process of deciding what to do.
2) If you don't have a card rack, then the actress can be seated on a
chair and have an end table and phone next to her. She can tell the story to the audience,
after it happened. She will have to say things like, "I picked up a card that said
...." or "Then I saw a section of cards that had ...." She can end the
scene by picking up the phone and dialing Sharon and saying, "Sharon? It's Debbie.
I'm coming over and I'm bringing dinner ...."
3) Make sure to keep the pace up. A monologue will drag if it moves too
slowly. The lighthearted opening section is a good place to move through the lines
quickly.
4) In the final paragraph, the actress makes what may seem to be a
"dramatic change." Downplay this. As she talks out loud, she's really making a
discovery about the depth of her relationship. It isn't dramatic, but it is profound.
RELATED SCRIPTURES
In John 15:12-13, Jesus tells us to love one another as he has loved us. In
Matthew 5, Jesus talks about "going the extra mile." Both Scriptures are easily
applied to this script.
RELATED THEMES
Related Themes This sketch can also be used when talking about loss or grief
support. It can also serve as a reminder that grieving continues for a long time.
