Circus

Circus

“So what’s the catch, Kid? The show doesn’t start for a couple hours. You wanna buy a ticket early?”

“No, I don’t want to buy a ticket. I want to join the circus.”

“Ok Kid, I’ve heard that before. You want to join the circus. What do you think you want to do?”

“I’m not sure. I like elephants. I’m pretty good at working. I could learn to do all kinds of things.”

“Don’t tell me. You’re running away from home and you read the book Toby Tyler.”

“How did you know that?”

“Kid, this is kind of a daily occurrence for me.”

“It is? So where are all the kids that you hire?”

“Now that’s a good question. Look around. How many kids do you see?”

“Not too many.”

“Why do you think that is?”

“Cause you don’t hire too many kids?”

“You got it.”

“Well, you could think about hiring me and I could be your one and only kid.”

“Let me guess, Kid. You want to wear a fancy costume and walk on the high wire or swing on the trapeze. Something really glamorous.”

“Probably not. I’m not that beautiful, and I think those costumes they wear, costumes that the women wear, I just don’t think it’s me.”

 “And what do you think is you, Kid?”

“I don’t know. I um, I’ve been practicing walking the fence at my house. It’s a wobbly fence and sometimes it throws me off. It’s about maybe an inch wide. I can do it for a long time but then there’s one spot that always wobbles a whole lot and throws me off. I could probably learn to walk the tightrope. But I would want a different kind of uni – costume. Pause – I think I would be good with elephants.”

“Why not tigers or lions?”

“I don’t think tigers or lions would like me very much.”

“Does it matter whether tigers like you or lions like you?”

“Maybe not to you, but it would matter to me.”

“So why elephants?”

“I think elephants would understand me. They would know how much I like them and how much I think they’re very smart. And they would understand that I would want to take care of them and I think maybe they would want to take care of me. It would be a relationship.”

“And how do you think elephants in a circus are going to take care of you?”

“I just think they would smile when they see me.”

“Well Kid, I think I can understand that. I’m beginning to understand that I probably would smile when I see you. So where are you gonna stay if you join my circus?”

“I, I don’t know.”

“You ran away from home.”

“Yep. I, I guess you could say that.”

“What do you mean you guess I could say that? Did you run away or didn’t you run away?”

“I’m not home.”

“Does anybody know where you are?”

“I hope not.”

“What was so bad at your home that you felt like you had to be away?”

“My stepmother was going to kill me.”

 “Whoa Kid, everybody says that.”

“They do?”

“Did you ever read the fairy tales? The ones with wicked stepmothers? You know the story of Hansel and Gretel, Snow White, Cinderella?”

“Yeah, I do. Those, those stories are pretty scary. I never liked them.”

“So why do you think your own particular stepmother is going to kill you?”

“Because she stands by my bed at night with a knife and she talks about killing me. She can’t make up her mind.”

“Kid, are you sure about this?”

“I’m pretty sure.”

“You’re sure you’re not dreamin this, you’re not makin it up?”

“I guess I could be dreaming it. I’m not making it up. Do people dream the same thing night after night?”

“Some people dream the same thing night after night.”

“Well then, I guess I could be dreaming, but I don’t think I am.”

“Have you told your father about this?”

“No. He wouldn’t believe me. He doesn’t want things to be not right. There are a lot of things I don’t understand.  He would tell me I was dreaming. He might tell me to lock the door to my bedroom. I don’t know what he would say. He works at night so he isn’t there anyway. So, I did never told him.”

“You just left?”

“Um hum, I just left.”

“Did you leave a note?”

“Nope. No note.”

“What are they going to think when they can’t find you?”

“I don’t know. They’ll think I’m not there. They’ll probably be really mad. Nobody will do the dishes.”

“Why shouldn’t I just call them or the police? Have them come and get you and straighten things out with you and your family.”

“You could. You could call the police. They would come and get me. They would put me into a foster home. And that might be even worse. I don’t know. I’m more afraid of that than just being here. Look if you don't want me here, I mean you probably aren't allowed to just keep kids who run away, I just thought of that. I'm going to just keep going. I'll find something.”

“Wait Kid, stick around awhile. Just where do you think you’re going to stay if you’re here? If I finish this cigar and say, “OK Kid, you get to feed the elephants”, then what?”

“I guess I didn’t think about it too much. I thought maybe I would just sleep with the elephants. I figured somewhere you would have a bathroom.”

“And what did you think you were going to eat?”

“Well, I’m not like Toby Tyler – he really ate a lot! I thought maybe I could do some chores for somebody who sells food and they could just give me a little food to eat, leftovers, stuff they couldn’t sell. I can work really hard. My stepmother made me work really hard. I can do all kinds of things.”

“Including walking that fence.”

“Yep, and other stuff.”

“How long have you been on the road Kid? How did you know where we are?”

“I saw some signs.”

“Have you ever seen a circus?”

“Yes. I’ve seen a circus, this circus and I’ve read about circuses. Every year in my elementary school, actually every other year, in second, fourth, and sixth grade, we get to go to the circus. In Altoona at the - I forget what it’s called. It’s a big place, like a palace – a mosque? I’m not sure. I’m not sure I understand “mosque”. But at any rate, I have seen the circus. Two times.”

“So, have you eaten anything today?”

“I had, um, I had a candy bar and some M&Ms in my pocket. I ate those.”

“And what did you eat yesterday?”

“Ah.”

“Cause if you saw us in Altoona, where we are right now is a pretty long way from Altoona.”

“Yeah, I know. A very long way, and I was too afraid to try to jump on a train. I thought about it though. It looked pretty scary. I was going to try to climb on one when it wasn’t moving. But I didn’t know where it would go.  And I wanted to find you – well I didn’t know you yet, but I saw you there, in Altoona. Your circus. You have a different voice today – not as circusy. I figured you would stop for a couple of days, maybe a week and that would give me time to catch up with you.”

“You thought about jumping on a train. Anybody offer you just a ride?”

“Yeah, but it was as scary as the train. I kind of hid when I heard a car slowing down.”

 “How old are you, Kid?”

“I’m, I’m ten. I’ll be eleven in the summer.”

“So, my guess is you’ve been on the road more than a couple a days, and you’ve been eating M&Ms and not much else?”

“No, not much else. I took all the money from my bank, but it’s gone. I didn’t know food would cost so much.”

“And you’ve been walking? What about sleeping?”

“Look! I have my book bag and this small pack, a fleece and some clothes. I walk until nearly dark and get off the road and make a nest. That’s another thing I’m REALLY good at, making nests.  And! I have a map.”

“You knew how to read that map to get where you are now?”

“Well yeah! I’m here.”

“That was a kind of dumb question, wasn’t it?”

“It’s ok. Maybe not every kid who wants to join your circus has to travel so far. Maybe they don’t need maps. I took this one out of my dad’s glove compartment. When we go to visit my Aunt in Georgia, I tell him where to turn, actually I tell him when he’s made a wrong turn and how to get back to the right road. My stepmother doesn’t drive. She doesn’t like maps.”

“I think I might have an idea. Let me hear your biggest voice – really big, a circus voice - Ladies and Gentlemen!”

“Ok. Ladies and Gentlemen.”

“Again, pretend you’re in the center ring. Pretend you have a whip and give it a snap or two.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Crack! Crack!”

“Come on Kid, we’ll get you something to eat. Lily, with a magic act is on her own at the moment. She’ll give you a bunk, a place for your stuff. Stay out of her hair and cleanup after yourself. She’ll be ok with your chatter, but she might not always pay much attention.”

“This is real? I’m not dreaming?”

“Not dreamin, Kid. So here’s the catch. Gonna have you a costume made just like mine, top hat and all. We’ll be billed as Maestro Claude Saucy and the Kid – youngest Ringmaster under the Big Top.”