But alas, fly she could not.

I watched in horror as the cable supporting her body snapped like a twig in a heavy wind. As if in slow motion, I watched her falling helplessly toward the wooden floor. The cable curled in on itself like a snake, snapping toward the ceiling. One end of the cable smashed a flood light, causing sparks to descend upon the stage like falling stars.

Thump! Her body bounced twice as she met the floor, the fall twisting her legs. I saw her move, perhaps for the last time.

For a moment, there was silence. The music was no more. Slowly groans began from the back of the room, then screams. Men and women from stage right and left descended upon her, fondling her. Was she breathing?

Her wings were now crumbled beneath her. Lifeless, without form. As a butterfly upon a windshield, her limp body was spread upon the wooden floor. A bird without wings.

“Man was not meant to fly,” said the woman sitting behind me. “If God wanted us to fly, he’d given us wings.”