Theater and Good

Having just finished Neil Simon's book The Play Goes On, I feel as though I have been to the theater and backstage at the theater and on two coasts and across the Atlantic. Perhaps I ought to be exhausted, but I am actually incredibly jazzed. I mean, how great is it to "be at the theater" even when you can't really afford the time or the money to go?

Funny thing is, tonight we actually did go--to the theater, that is (though, since the show originated in London, I guess you could say we sort of went across the Atlantic too).

In the book, Simon talks about someone telling him that if you have an instinct to do something good, you shouldn't dwell on it. You should just do it. While I can't say I didn't dwell on the idea of a family trip to the theater, actually buying the tickets was the kind of doing good he was referencing. Having Broadway-obsessed children doesn't mean you have the resources to indulge their habit all the time . It just means that doing something good, at least in their minds, is exactly what we did tonight, stage door autographs and all.

That "instinct to do something good" is, as far as I can tell, less about a charitable contribution to the world and more about contributing to the happiness and enrichment of the people around you. For Simon, it is about taking his grandson to London. For us, at this moment in time, we stepped out of "too expensive" and "not enough time," and just followed that instinct to do good for someone. I imagine we'll get to dwell on the results of that for a while, as we hear the stories of tonight from our kids. The bills will come later, but I can say with confidence that the good has been done.