He is always
and never
exactly what he seems,
ever-present 'round
the Big Top,
performing (
within his three-ring circus
) miraculous feats
with comic seriousness,
bringing fragile,
multicolored,
rubbery skins
to life
with a big breath,
a quick tie-off:
gentle gifts set floating.
He uses grease paint
so that we might better
understand (
from a distance
) as we watch the Performance
like children:
sometimes delighted
and awed,
sometimes frightened
and confused.
And when it's time to leave,
perhaps we see
we are as constant as his breath
held to the shape
of balloons.