The crowd stared back at me
and I saw every face .

I looked despairingly into each eye .

There was no where to hide
in that tiny little space ,

I just wanted to crawl away and die .

There was I ,
a man without a name who came to play .

Everything went quiet and very tense .

I needed an exodus ,
a quick get away .

I had a disappointed audience .

If the world is an oyster ,
I closed up like a clam ,
surrendering in peril to stage fright .

Into a slaughter house like a sacrificial lamb ,
I had to face the fear or else take flight .

A performer who felt as if he didn’t belong ,
Stood and retreated back inside his shell .

A multitude of people where waiting for a song .
I was lost , locked up in my stage fright cell .

A performer who felt as if he didn’t belong ,
Stood and retreated back inside his shell .

By Paul McCann