The Greatest Show on Earth

The ringmaster stood in the prep area, listening to the sounds of the crowd filling into the huge circus tent. He was eager to begin his grand speech that would be the start of the show, but he summoned the patience to wait for his cue. After all, this was his very first show as ringmaster, and he should savor every moment of the experience. Today would make the last fifteen years of struggle and sacrifice worthwhile. Today would be the greatest day of his life.

The lights dimmed, the music began, and the spotlight focused on his entrance to the tent. Showtime! He proudly marched into the tent, waving to the cheering crowd. He enjoyed the cheers. He enjoyed the spotlight following his every footstep. He even enjoyed "Entry of the Gladiators" blaring through the sound system. He walked to the center ring, and took the microphone that was lowered from the roof. The music faded away and the crowd stood silent in anticipation.

"Ladies and Gentl....." He started to say, but was interrupted by an enormous crash from outside of the tent. Every head turned toward the source of the sound, one thousand eyes vainly attempting to see through the heavy canvas wall.

Dead silence reigned for the span of a few tense heartbeats. Then a clearly panicked man wearing half of a clown costume burst through a side entrance. "FIRE!" the half-clown shouted.

Before anyone could even process the bizarre interruption, a sequined young woman ran into the tent through the main entrance. "THE ANIMALS ARE LOOSE!" she yelled without slowing down. An elephant crashed its way through the entrance a second later, and a swarm of people and animals flooded into the tent behind it.

The crowd quickly joined in the stampede, but the ringmaster didn't move an inch. He was suddenly unable to register anything in the chaos swirling around him as anything more than blurs of different colors. He slowly sank to his knees, but somehow he remained untouched by anything in the carnage. The mobs swirled around him as if they knew he was protected. The ringmaster opened his mouth to scream, but no sound escaped his lips. The blurs of color around him seemed to merge into a single streak of light. Then his world went black.

******

It was a long time before things settled down. The animals were collected and returned to their cages, the fire had been doused, the crowd had dispersed. The circus crew bustled around the tent, assessing the damage and trying to salvage what little was left from the disaster.

The ringmaster awoke with a start, covered in ash and dust, but completely unharmed. A few workers noticed him, and came to help him off the ground. He shook them off with an angry growl, however, and refused to even stand up. After a few more failed attempts to clean him away with the rest of the debris, the crew left him alone to his chosen spot.

He sat there for hours and hours, and did not even notice when the crew left for the night. It was well after midnight when he finally stood. Shoulders slumped, head downcast, he looked the very image of a man with a broken spirit.

All of a sudden, his body sprang to life as if possessed by some unseen force. He wore a huge grin, and with a flourish he bowed to the empty grandstands.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," he announced in a clear, resonant voice. "Welcome to the Greatest Show on Earth!"

With that, the energy left his body as abruptly as it had entered. His head lowered again, and his shoulders slumped back down. Although neither head nor shoulders were quite as far down has they had been a few moments earlier.

And with the barest beginnings of a smile on his face, he walked into the night.