Mary Poppins

Last November my close friend, K, and I found out the stage show Mary Poppins was coming to Perth and we were both quite excited as we’d heard it was playing over in the eastern states before and wondered if we’d be lucky enough to have it travel west. I’d ordered the tickets a few days after they’d gone on sale and managed to get some pretty decent seats, a vast improvement over the previous show we’d seen earlier last year. The date was set for May 10th at 8pm. It was just a matter of waiting for the performance.

Unfortunately my friend K wasn’t there with me to enjoy the show a couple days ago. For more than a year and a half, she’d been undergoing treatment for cancer that had spread to her liver. In February she stopped the treatment and started palliative care. Last month she was taken to hospice and her condition deteriorated rapidly in a matter of days, such that she wasn’t expected to live more than a few days. She hung on for more than two weeks but finally had her release from the pain and suffering on May 3rd. It was expected but still such a shock and will continue to be for a while.

K had been so looking forward to Mary Poppins. Her memory had gotten really bad and she’d call up quite regularly to check she hadn’t missed it and I’d reassure her. When I finally had the news of her death, one of the first things I thought was she really was going to miss the show. It wasn’t until that point I could or would do anything about her ticket…although it would have become necessary to take some action before the night. I thought about not going but I knew K would want me to be there. I was fortunate to have another friend able to go at short notice and understanding the situation completely.

Last Thursday I went to see Mary Poppins and it was a really lovely show.. My friend K would have loved it and we’d have marveled over the set designs and changes. And the songs and the dancing. A very entertaining show it certainly was. I did enjoy seeing it with another friend but it wasn’t an easy night and I so missed my friend and her company. And I’ll continue to miss her company at many shows in the future but her memory will always be with me.