Experience #16 The Circus

Awe. Wonder. Amazement. The circus has the ability to make even adults feel like children again. Barnum and Baily’s 200 Spectacular certainly delivered on their promise of a spectacular performance. The acrobatic feats were jaw dropping and the stunts bordered on insane. There were elephants, tigers, and clowns (oh, my.)

My favorite, and what has always been my favorite, is the tight rope walkers. When I was a child, I’d watch the circus on television and wish to be able to balance delicately above an audience and swing through the air to feel the sensation of flying. Flying has always appealed to me (of course, it doesn’t entirely go along with that phobia I have of falling from high places.)

After the walkers performed, my daughter turned to me and said she wanted to do that when she was older. I had to smile (though for a split second I worried about how many stitches she’d have if she attempted anything like that at home.) Hadn’t I been her age when I first wanted to soar through the air?

The two times I’d gone to a circus as a child, it had been to small ones nowhere near the grand scale performed in the arena. At both of those events, the air flyers had not been part of the act. When I saw the advertisement for the circus, I immediately thought back to watching the acrobatic flyers on television when I was a child. And though it had not been written on this year’s list, I immediately thought of it as an addition.

Of course, my son’s favorite act was the seven dirt bikes racing around inside a metal ball and not colliding. If he decides to attempt a stunt like that at any age, I will probably experience a heart attack (so not on my list of experiences.)

It was a fantastic experience. As I near the half way mark on my list of experiences, I realize that I want to continue doing this for a long time to come. I may be writing a new list every year.