Today I took the boys to the 139th Barnum and Bailey and Ringling Brothers Circus. Jon and I took Tyler when he was two…but he doesn’t remember it of course.
As we made it to our seats, with souvenirs in hand (one stuffed animal elephant and one stuffed white tiger), the boys couldn’t wait for the show to begin.
I sat there next to them, watching Ryan hold his stuffed elephant and watching Tyler read the big glossy Circus book we also bought. I couldn’t help but think about going to the circus as a child myself and thinking how amazing it is that now I get to share this experience them.
The lights went off and the music started, both of them sat up tall and scooted to the edge of their seats in anticipation. I loved the look on Ryan’s face as he watched the elephants parade in….it was priceless.
I looked over at Tyler and he wouldn’t take his eyes off the stage (well three rings).
During intermission we decided it was time for a refreshment…..snow cones in elephant souvenir cups….what could be better.
When it was over, we held hands to walk out and Tyler turns to me and says….”Mommy, I know why it’s called the Greatest Show on Earth….because that really was the greatest show on Earth!!!”
Side note #1: As I write this Ryan is upstairs with me now going through all his stuffed animals and gathering the animals that were in the circus today….so far he has found: a dog, a zebra, his new elephant, a horse, a clown, and he just said he needed to find more.
Side note #2: Besides watching my boys have a wonderful time today and seeing the circus through their eyes I couldn’t help but think the following as I watched the performances….
- How much doe these performers get paid?
- How does one become a circus performer?
- What do they do between performances?
- Has the Tiger trainer ever been bit?
- Do they wash those costumes everyday?
- What would I do if one of my boys wanted to join the circus?
- Is that lady lip syncing?
- What is the markup on all this stuff….food, souvenirs, ect?
- I would love to know how much profit the circus makes.
- Do they travel by circus train?
- Do they ever fall down?
- How much do they practice?
I guess thoughts like these are what separate me from the children. If I asked one of them what they were thinking during the show…I think they would simply say…”this is cool!!!”
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