I’ve lost four family members to circuses
Each time the performers asked
For a volunteer someone
I’m related to raised their hand
Then (in order)
My mother
Younger brother
Second cousin
Great aunt
Were escorted to the stage
And (in order)
Trapped in a mirror
Sawed in half
Lit on fire
Fed to a lion
After the show we’d wait in the lobby
For the brave volunteer
To be returned to us
They never were
I try to tell
What’s left of my family
To stop going to circuses
They refuse
At least, I plead
Stop volunteering
They pause
At the dining table which
Has fewer filled chairs
Each year
Then my father speaks
We can’t help it Edward
Our family was meant to be onstage
The Piccadilly Players
Plant their big top in town next week
We already have our tickets
-- Ethan Richmond got stuck inside a grandfather clock playing hide-and-seek as a child. He has yet to be found.