#damn everything but the circus
Seeing Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden
(Cornell Capa. 1953)
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(art by Sister Corita Kent, found hereandhere)
Damn everything but the circus!
…damn everything that is grim, dull,
motionless, unrisking, inward turning,
damn everything that won’t get into the
circle, that won’t enjoy, that won’t throw
its heart into the tension, surprise, fear
and delight of the circus, the round
world, the full existence…
—e.e. cummingsI’ve got a new post up on Substack. It’s about the circus and trains and springtime, and restlessness and longing and loneliness.
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O sing a song of later tonight,
you’ll hold your darling girl close
as she falls asleep.
You’ll fall asleep in her bed & through the fog of dreams you’ll hear the circus train departing, heading for the next town. You’ll hear that whistle, moaning low; you’ll hear the wheels screech, you’ll hear your little one whisper where next. & you’ll jolt awake, heart fluttering like a startled dove. For a moment you’ll swear you left your girl at the circus & the thing next to you is just a girl-shaped poppet. But see: her small puffs of breath. How she twitches in her sleep. Safe as houses.–Jessie Lynn McMains, from “[O sing a song of midway lights–]” (as appears in I Want You To See This Before I Leave #20; it’s also an excerpt from my book-length work The Loneliest Show On Earth)
