The System Reacts (a brief play)

The System Reacts (a brief play) by Sheri Grutz Lights up on an all gray room with a mural of a mountain on the wall. Doctor dressed in all denim is standing in front of female patient who is sitting in an arm chair rigidly. Behind him is a large table with 4 glasses half-filled with water, a large pitcher of water, and a large bowl. PATIENT It's freezing in here! DOCTOR Yes. It's a time of high alertness. PATIENT I don't want my name used. DOCTOR There's a name for that, but ok. I've known Dr. Stefani for quite some time, he explained to you why we asked you here today, right? PATIENT If it's in your written notes, it's all mental to me. DOCTOR There will be a paper trail, it's good to find your way back. PATIENT But this has only been happening for about 2 months. DOCTOR Yes. They all want to know the beginning, even the best of us see a gestation period, and clearly we're not Born to Live at this point. Let me bring you over to this table. I've got everything set up. (She gets up and moves to the table, and doctor stands behind it, facing her) Water is essential, I'll try to keep this basic. Now, I'm going to add red to this first glass, and stir it in. There. What does seeing this make you think of? PATIENT Cooking a steak. DOCTOR Interesting. And how does that make you feel? PATIENT Like adding onions. DOCTOR The study on crying will be for the next patient. Ok, now I'm going to add white, and stir it in. There. What does seeing this make you think of? PATIENT Strawberry ice cream. DOCTOR Hmm, I think I'm already seeing a pattern of worry. Do you eat when you're worried. PATIENT I suppose. DOCTOR Ok, in this second glass of water, I'm going to add a fizzily pop tablet. Yes, yes. What does this make you think of? PATIENT That my nerves are exploding! DOCTOR So you feel fried to contain this? PATIENT I'm not in my own bubble you know. DOCTOR Let's try this third glass. I'm going to add a handful of small rocks. There. Now what? PATIENT I'm thinking about washing my hands. DOCTOR Yes, the rocks are quite dirty. Do you wring your hands too? PATIENT Sure. There's no playing instruments when you're this high-strung. DOCTOR Let me try another glass. I'm just going to add a tea bag, you will see it seeping. There, it's already working. Does seeing this seeping make you think of releasing? PATIENT It's no good, it makes me feel like it can't be this natural. DOCTOR Perhaps not, but even the tea bag reacts. I'm going to dump these glasses and try one more thing. (he slowly pours each glass into the large bowl, then fills one up nearly full.) Ok, now imagine this is summer, and yes, we will have a summer, and it will be easy to quench your thirst. How does this make you feel? PATIENT Like I can't relax. The glass is full, and I'm filled with tension. DOCTOR But what about a hammock in summer? PATIENT I've developed racing heart, I really think about running away, not relaxing. DOCTOR I feel lost for words, but I think we did learn a bit today. How you feel about the world right now is affecting your mental health. I'll write something up, and share it with Dr. Stefani. I would prescribe lifting heavy objects repetitively every day so that these heavy feelings have some practical use, you know, you can put your fingers on it. PATIENT Alright. And just one more thing, I'm overwhelmed by wanting to clean those glasses now. DOCTOR Nah, just more of less the art of science. This was broad strokes, they say the devil is in the details. Thank you for coming in. You're not alone. PATIENT Yeah, but we're all forced to be. DOCTOR And by the way, I prefer chocolate ice cream, and hear it's good for the brain. PATIENT I'll keep that in mind. Bye. (She walks out the door. Doctor goes to the calendar on the wall, and he takes it down and places it on the table. Lights out. The end.)