Sometimes I feel like I am traveling back in time.  Last week a small traveling circus came to town.  I had no idea it was coming until a patient came to my consultorio.  He was a nice looking young father with his daughter.  They proceeded to tell me that they were part of the circus and that they would be performing in town for a few days.  I treated his daughter , and I thought to myself “Maybe I will go and see this circus performance.”  Later, we heard there were going to be lions, and we decided “Let’s go!”  It was under a big tent, but it felt small in regards to how a circus feels in the US.  This was not the Ringling Bros.  It was a much smaller show, but more intimate.  Every seat was a good seat, if not comfortable.  It turns out the man who had been in my clinic was a lion tamer, a trapeze artist, and a unicycle rider.  Because I had taken care of his daughter, we got moved up to VIP.  That felt awkward, because we were the only ones seated in that section, but it was a nice gesture.  Did you know lions have a very strong scent?  I didn’t either, but it can be overwhelming if the big top is not very big.  We enjoyed the show, although we thought the clown skits were a bit long.  The next day, I was pleased to have a few of the performers come through the office for visits.  It turns out this is a family affair, and all of them are related by birth or marriage.  It really was a small traveling family circus.

The stage before the show begins.

The kids with Austin, our missionary intern waiting for the show to start.

The seating was boards stacked into the inclined metal tubings. It was a little shaky.

This guy did stunts wrapped in this giant scarf / ribbon. He would wrap himself in it, climb to the top of the big top and then unroll himself falling into positions like this.

The juggler, balancing on a board, over a tube, on a table that is five feet off the ground. It was impressive.

This young, handsome guy is 17. The juggler up close!

This young girl is seven years old and flew all over the place on the trapeze. She was a good 20 feet off the ground without a net.

The lion cage. The smell was very strong.