OH NO YOU DIDN’T – OH YES I DID – OH NO YOU DIDN’T – OH YES I DID

 

 

Hope sees the invisible

Feels the intangible

And achieves the impossible

Hold on

Pain ends

Tis Pantomime Season in Dublin “Oh Yes It Is” and I have friends involved in every production from The Helix, The Tivoli, The Olympia & The Gaiety Theatre. Now I was invited to the press night of “Little Red Riding Hood” to see my good buddy Joe Conlan perform as the Panto Dame “Granny McGregor” 26 years he’s performing on stage in Pantomime for the people of Dublin.

But also this week I sold an option on one of my screenplays, I didn’t want to sell this because it was a love story and was close to my own heart. But I did eventually and the news was announced last Friday.

Now what’s my point in talking about Pantomime and screenplays in Hollywood and this entire showbiz razzle dazzle. I started out in Pantomime touring Ireland under the guidance of Eurovision winner Shay Healy and award winning director Michael Scott.

Michael rang me and asked would I fancy another tour as a magical elf, dust off the auld cobwebs “Oh No He Didn’t – Oh Yes He Did” and I was over the moon. You see performing to children and telling tales of space adventures and Christmas magic was where I learned my craft as a professional. Playing in Galway’s Town Hall Theatre for the first time was magical. You see in life sometimes we can forget about our grassroots. If playing a Magical Elf or Christmas Character pays for my mortgage for the next 20 years then happy days is right.

But sometimes people’s opinions can have a massive impact on our own judgement. They don’t care about your happiness but they will tell you why you shouldn’t take a job even tho you should.

So let’s take it back to our grassroots this Christmas. Strip it all back. What did we love to do for ourselves? You see you can work in a job Monday – Friday 9-5 but what’s stopping you from coaching, teaching, learning, creating, and doing something that makes you happy outside of your work hours. Something as stupid as it may sound but makes you smile from the inside out.

A friend of mine recently started to knit at night, then the weekend. She cried with laughter at first “Ah I’m not going out tonight, loads of knitting to catch up on” now she was embarrassed at first. But now she is selling her creations at craft fairs and to family and friends. But only for her, now it’s a hobby that makes some money for her but makes her smile throughout the whole process.

With the year coming to the end, do me a favour don’t make any new year’s resolutions. But instead of thinking of all the negative things that have happened and the failures. Think of all the happy memoires you shared this year. Now, I know you can all tell me one. Hold that memory close and next year I want that number to double.

In life we all have pain, but hold on because pain ends.

It may not feel right at this moment but at some point you will learn from those failures. When that happens, for me anyway it’s a double positive.

Anyone who laughs at your positive outlook on your own life, don’t even give them a second thought. Remember at this time of year it’s full of people I like to call “Coffee & Kicks” they just want to pretend to be a friend but knock you down.

So think about your grassroots today, one happy memory from this year and remember that will double next year.

What I love about life, we are all different, all unique and we can achieve anything.

“Oh No You Can’t – Oh Yes I Can”.

Oh Yes I Can.