the bad vibes stop here

     Once I sat at a poetry reading by someone you have heard of. She's very famous. You probably know and like some of her poetry.
     About 20 minutes into the reading, right in the middle of one of her poems, she stopped short. She took a deep breath, looked down with a knit brow, and then looked back up at the attentive audience.
     "Someone in here is giving off a very negative vibe, and I do not appreciate it," she snapped, sending a puff of impatience out the nose.
     We in the audience were instantly wide-eyed, charged with something we didn't know we were guilty of, and suddenly feeling ashamed. We tried to convey innocence with our facial expressions, to muster up the most positive vibes we could. I tried to feel where these bad vibes were coming from, but all I could get were the overwhelming, angry vibes from the famous poet.
     She scanned the room, glaring at all of us. "I would appreciate it if you would either leave or STOP IT. NOW."
     There was a long pause as the audience sat frozen in our seats. Then she went back to reading her poetry.
     I have to say: it felt impossible not to give off a bit of a negative vibe after that. I tried, but it was really tough. I was afraid bad vibes were leaking out of me, like a foul, you know, odor. I had been having a pleasant time, but once she scolded us, scattershot like that, in such a harsh, peculiar way, it was very difficult to feel safe.
     From where I sat, it felt like the wrong way to handle bad vibes: to stir up more.
     I still admire her poetry, but I don't like it any more. Not in the way you want to rest in a good poem. Now I feel like I kind of have to pinch my nose a bit. Like there's poop next to a hydrangea bush that's in full bloom. It's a bummer. 

 I feel better telling the story, though. It's been about 25 years since that afternoon. Time to let go. The bad vibes stop here, man. Look at the hydrangea -- it's in full bloom!