First off, I’d like to thank you if you read this play. You offered your time, which is the most valuable thing we have, in exchange for a story and I am truly grateful.

The hope for this piece is to create real characters, people we know, who live and breathe in ordinary and extraordinary situations. Whether it is the calming patience of The Old Man, the centered strength of The Runner, the heartbreaking love of The Mother, or the refreshing directness of The Park Keeper, each human in this story is supposed to have edges, flaws, and nuance. I suppose that’s what makes them relatable.

I wanted to write something I would be excited to perform even though, ironically, I forgot to write a character I could play. It helps to understand that I am a fierce advocate for equality (gender, race, disability, etc.) and wrote this play with the intent of it being unbound by any casting preconceptions. Feel free to cast any role differently than the gender indicated in the character name and all roles should be considered open to all ethnicities and level of physical or cognitive ability.

I am also the parent of an autistic child and, although the role of The Park Keeper was written as autistic, the show is not about autism. Reggie’s challenges are personal to him as are everyone else’s. Respecting differences begins with accepting that we are all different and, as The Old Man said, “embracing every little human connection.”