"ringmaster" poems
Bluto, the world’s strongest man, could tear bread loaf-sized pieces off a steel-belted tractor tire with his bare hands.
But he could not lift a single smithereen of his sensitive Piscean heart when Lily, the luscious, leggy Leo trapeze artist, left him for steely-eyed Arien Karl, the literate and literary lion tamer.
Horoscopic Circus, Act II
She was a Cancer Dragon. Like catnip to the Piscean Tiger, whose feline DNA was his Achilles heel. Especially when she wore heels. And nylons. The end is nylon, he thought. I love you she said. I love you more he affirmed. And firm he soon became. Then being the ringmaster, she opened her mouth and incinerated him -- as only dragons can….
Jun 10, 2015
Jun 10, 2015 at 1:53 PM UTC
Maybe I needed words to confirm
whisper them when it's your turn
mouth me from across the room
E-L-E-P-H-A-N-T J-U-I-C-E
is the same as I love you
deceive me with mammals
as I play piano
pouring my heart upon the keys
do with me as you please
"I'm yours, I'm yours"
rings out the chorus
the deafening silence
of love unrequited.
A boomerang that doesn't come back
a runaway train on broken tracks
maybe I should have held onto words
not listened to the singing birds
that told me you felt the same
how could I believe your heart was tamed
for I am no ringmaster
a gazelle that's wandered into foreign pastures
I was your prey
yet I was bold
for the words I say
are seldom told
with such earnest longing
so behold
I L-O-V-E Y-O-U
Aug 31, 2015
Aug 31, 2015 at 7:48 PM UTC
Everyone is jolly having fun
The woman in the corner is kissing everyone
The jokers bow to the jester who is leading the parade .
Jesters is lighting fireworks and burning up the place
The freaks scream and shout to see the fireworks .
The circus act is ready to begin
The kids jump with joy when the ringmaster whips the cage
Foolish thoughts
Apr 30, 2014
Apr 30, 2014 at 2:34 AM UTC
Once there was a carnival.
It was exuberant and joyful,
With elephants and lions befriending the penguins and sea otters,
And little fairy-like acrobats leaping and zooming across tightropes,
As if they were walking on solid ground.
There was a faint smell of funnel cake and cotton candy and popcorn,
And the sound of people chatting animatedly about,
"Wasn't that act precious" or "oh, darling, look at that penguin! Isn't he cute?"
And then I got a little older.
And the carnival was still joyful, but something had changed.
The carnival had this joyful facade but it was hiding a darker exterior.
The elephants and lions were growing old, and the ringmaster,
Displeased with their best efforts,
Had started to hurt them.
The fairy-like acrobats had gotten injured over the years,
And wobbled a little bit here and there, with hints of hesitation
Perspiring on their foreheads.
The funnel cake and cotton candy and popcorn smell lingered still,
But it was almost as if people had grown tired of the taste,
And in the heat of the summer day,
The food had started to grow stale.
And then I got old.
The carnival had closed now.
Overgrown with weeds,
Stalls and tents covered in graffiti and muck,
It was now a gathering spot for children to make believe,
That they were the fairy acrobats who had once been so agile and captivating,
Or the animals that had struck terror and awe into toddler's hearts.
The carnival was gone,
but the children would run home to their grandmas and grandpas,
and they would tell them the story of how the lion was this close to biting off their nose,
and how one time the acrobat honestly did a front flip from a horse on to a bear onto a lion, and they were honest to God telling the absolute truth no matter what their spouse would say in the room next door.
The carnival was gone, but the stories would go on in a bittersweet never ending circle of intrigue and mystery and magic.
Mar 27, 2017
Mar 27, 2017 at 1:22 AM UTC
I can dance,
I can act,
I can sing,
I am a clown.
Watch me dance and fall down,
Laugh at me,
Laugh with me,
I don't care for I am a clown.
Want to hear a joke?
Knock, knock and what do you get...?
An open door, a busy tent,
The ringmaster cracks his whip and on I run with the animals,
In time to the beat I tap my feet,
I am a clown.
I can cry,
I can feel,
I can laugh,
I am a clown.
Watch me sweep the spotlight,
Applaud when I'm done,
Applaud but not in awe,
I am a clown.
Am I the only person who doesn't get the gag?
Am I the only puppet person?
Pull my strings and I'll do what you want me to,
I am a clown,
But I don't feel the laughter that you do,
It's hard to laugh - so on with the make-up - a front.
Oh, to climb the ladder and do the trapeze,
Or walk the high wire,
But no! I am a clown,
Respect?
"Sorry you're a clown."
I gave up,
I gave in,
Gave my all,
But I am a clown.
Don't bother to watch the tears,
Disregard the sad clown,
Disregard the talent of farce,
"You're a clown, you don't feel."
The darkroom is where I belong,
On a photo to bring joy, to make people laugh,
I make you laugh - I can command you,
But I know that when you go home,
Your lips won't mention me except to condescend,
It's an art! I trained at RADA you know.
So home I go,
Alone,
To a place where I can cry,
Into the arms of my wife,
See my children run to me,
The ones who know me,
That's what it's all been for,
Now I truly am a smiling clown,
It's not so bad as a clown at home.
Aug 27, 2012
Aug 27, 2012 at 2:49 PM UTC
We reside in a circus tent
strung with Goldilock's curls
Blood-red rose petals drizzle
from flesh-tinted ceiling drapes,
floating over
bodies reborn.
Blood-red rose
petals the color
of a lion's heart that beats
rhythmically,
imprisoned in the ivory-white
cartilage of a rib-cage
close to cracking,
threatening
an untamed liberation.
Who has enough audacity
to draw so near
to trust his head
between unpredictable jaws
or
tinseled with moths
to dance
illuminated by street-lights,
like snow that never falls.
Now she is laughing
with ethereal camaraderie
at the physicality
of Earth reality
illuminating
how limited vision is
before the lights start flashing
human and star dissolve
as explosively
irreversible chemical reactions
The ringmaster,
tossing Saturn's turn,
a voice like wind-chimes
an honest sparkle in his eye,
welcomes one to roam
where hearts dance freely
in ever-lasting starlit flame,
Concluding:
As long as we thank love for feeling
we'll never fall again.
Oct 10, 2012
Oct 10, 2012 at 2:43 PM UTC
He grasps stardust in his
Hands
Sand they turn truly lovely
In one hand
The edges glint golden rusty and Brown they turn
The color of lovely shriveled late
Autumn leaves
They sink soundly to the ground
Smell of raw;
Earthy taste moist like rich bread and wine
So red his lips have not
The look of innocence
Stripped naked like bark chiseled wood
How I would love them forever
My vain endeavour
Still he lays partially
Amongst the blotchy patch of shade as
The
Tree
Lovingly sways
To the sound of his
Coos
Darling he sleeps as the Sheep watch over him
My little Sheppard boy
Dreamingly sound
May rippling waters of your subconscious mind settle to shore
Tides emerge in deepest
Blue
Violently crash into the
Crimson colored rocky edge of the
Stone face cliff
Now faced with thick
Cumulonimbus clouds that
Cloud the dawn's last fiery
Light
Streaks of lightening
Silhouette whip upon his
Face and like thunder the
Lions
Roar not in pain
But in vigorous anger as
The ringmaster bows at the
Choking applaud of the
Painted audience
The wind unweaves grassy tangles in your hair
Tormenting suitors
Tease;
You messily please
Imperfectly perfect that you are able to
Appeal as effortlessly
Dressed in natures blend
Like a jar of
Roasted nuts
Of assorted trail mix
Still
You lay there
Decorated in earth's blankets of roots Grass
Twigs leaves
Oh
How it hurts to leave
I'd sit here loving you
Instead
Twist peering down upon
Deepest desires
Swept in eternal sleep
Longingly
I join your slumber
Drift into dream where I
May wake up finding you
Beside me
Where sleep steals me upon
Your shoulder
Warmth of arms lightly
Grasped
Dawn red as a match in the
Distance slowly
Smothered
Surrendering to nights cold
Silence
But the stars
Whispers of compliments to
The moon
Each night loved you kindly
Each star a kiss upon your
Cheek
May the stars love you Sweeter than they have Loved me
But darling I've loved you
Forever
Jul 18, 2014
Jul 18, 2014 at 1:17 PM UTC
A birthday party,
I turn as I lift this velvet curtain
unveil this night for you,
Sixty circus freaks unravel down the hill
like a coloured handkerchief
of liquid laughter,
all singing the circus theme.
The only tears are drawn on
and the smiles cut up to the ears,
a tap dance in a bathroom,
manic movements,
a tumble back up the hill.
Cherry liquor is juggled, smuggled around the room
to a clown sporting harlequin pantaloons.
I laugh, drink, talk,
like a mime I copy the idea of human.
A sudden disconnection of sometimes weirdness envelops,
I become an audience member,
able only to watch the show,
a speechless mime with my face in shadow.
A desire to shout into empty biscuit barrel silences
I test ringmaster reactions,
to get back in I perform in a freak show.
But my eyes catch eyes, a timed grasping on a social trapeze,
we swing above a net of old ties.
Jun 12, 2010
Jun 12, 2010 at 3:54 PM UTC
Do you ever feel the noon breeze?
hot yet relaxing brings you to an ease
it unfold the memories inside my brain's deepest crease
mesmerizing breeze i am standing under a tree
Moringa Oleifra the mighty
on which sits a sparrow chirping in mystique
and another strange little bird with long black beak
chirping tooo-weeee-t
on the other branches two squerrals playing hide and seek
and there sits a crow alone on one peak
i am in whirl of memories of past year 2016
didn't i mention it's about a boy in his thirties
he talked ocean deep
but treated me like i am a feast
like he is a ringmaster and i am his beast
i can still feel the pain of that time when all the good is out of my reach
Why do i think of him now when i am in peace?
would he think of me like i did?
nah or may be
nostalgic or i might weep
my orange colored dress doesn't irritate me in this scorching noon
but thoughts of you did
i have to head back from this muzz
i am going back to my people who loves me
where i am allowed to refuse
where there is no abuse
i am returning to peace
goodbye noon breeze
Aug 2, 2018
Aug 2, 2018 at 10:55 PM UTC
You’ve tamed the beasts -
my lovely Lord -
the twisted troll
the chucky doll
the banshee keening on the marsh
You whipped me to the temple
(they say you were too harsh)
these cravings flame insatiable
a harpy gorging fatty flesh
i ****** the thorns into your eyes
and cackled as they bled:
behold God’s raving jest!
then found you loved me best.
like wild waves and wind
You stilled at Galilee
such savage ache and violent lust
You lull with tender potency
once more a child
quiet, wide-eyed
my head rests on
the Master’s knee
Apr 1, 2012
Apr 1, 2012 at 10:21 AM UTC
My child bearing years, you see
But nothing can replace the intoxication
Of a new pair of lips and limbs when the clock strikes midnight
Forever at my lips, bidding adieu to sobriety
I can follow and fall into the arms of a new sincerity
Unburdened by half-baked promises, letters of stress and civil warfare
I can be your wife, I can be your life
But only for a night
Forever at my lips bidding adieu,
This is a dance I love to do
My nature proclaims a livelihood of attraction
A constant hunger and desire for justification
My dance I continue
I waver into the night
A flimsy frolic in the daze of whiskey
Lips and limbs anew
A dance of forgiven sins and Spanish limbs
A dance of forgiven sins and German fingertips
A dance of forty five minutes and millions of pelvic on my hips
This is my dance, not his.
The partners come and go
But the dance is me.
I am the ringmaster
My name belongs to me.
Forever alight with song and dance
A chance of meeting a new thrill
The intoxication of one night spill
A class of movies and sin
A dance that begs for gin.
This is my dance, my dance is me
You can join, but not in sobriety.
A cuddle or two is nice aftercare,
But the idea of true love is a story hard to bear
A few limbs, millions of genitals makes my fix
For my dance is me, my dance is I
Burning ablaze in the wake of the night
I am me, you are not
My dance is me, My dance is I
Forever forever engraved in my soul
A dance of my own
A life made for me, made for the rich lining that resides in my whole.
I am whole. I am me. I am the dance with or without sobriety.
Come hither, jealousy.
Nov 25, 2014
Nov 25, 2014 at 8:40 AM UTC
The hippos are boiled alive when the curious circus caught aflame.
Who is to blame? The drunkard clowns or the tightrope walkers and their ineffable fear of heights?
Maybe the ringmaster and all his lion taunting, crowd cheering, crowd antagonizing ways,
maybe he's to blame for releasing the bearded lady in a room full of kerosene and unseen wicker flames...
Or...just maybe, it was an accident and could not be prevented under the extraordinary circumstances
which took place on that fateful day where hippos became a poached soup of meat, teeth, and lard.
Apr 29, 2012
Apr 29, 2012 at 9:51 AM UTC
Creeping souls, Beware.
Look around, shes here!
The Ringmaster's near.
Prepare for thy seasons,
Spring, Summer-sault, fall!
Light, shine,
Blinding thy eyes.
Look, Look this way!
The Ringmaster is here!
"Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen, To thy Haven."
Of sanity's sphere.
Hello Boys and Girls,
Cackle, clap, cry.
Laugh away my dearies!
High air fives! Good one!(Yeah Right)
I twirl my cane,
dancing into the ring.
I tip my hat, Announcing my name.
"Ringmaster Jinx at your service!"
"Rhymes with Sphinx!"
Stampede around!
Bounding lions roar,
Elephants triumphant!
Sounding war,A war of the century.
A crack of the whip spurs motion,
Big cats rear, growling at the stands.
Ace makes them sit, and spin!
"Get on with it!"
Thundering hooves sound,
Rippling figures race into the ring.
"Horses freedom ring! Hail Gladiator!"
They rear raising their heads high,
Controlled by Vex and Zakirai!
Cackling children scream,
"Oh my! Look!"
"Clowns wheeling into the ring!"
HONK! :o) Laugh and Dream!
Pies fly,
Unicycles collapse.
Laughter erupts!
Pie war! Duck!
Spring, soar!
"Guide the war!"
Left, right,back.
One "SMACK!" Two collide.
I control the theme, an Extravagant team.
Even if, I'm covered in pie cream.
Dance, Bound, Leap!
Up, Up and away my sweet!
Dancing through the air, gravity defy!
Hysterical...Insanity.
Your leap, of faith!
Vex falls into the net,
Safe, grounded, relieved.
My friends cheer with glee!
Insane sanity!
Look around, see me on the ground.
Hello Boys and Girls, Enjoy the show!
Haven Circus, Sphere of Humanities finest!
I twirl my cane,
Tip my hat,
And proclaim my name.
"Jinx the Ringmaster of this train!"
Goodbye one and all!
Hope you enjoyed the show!
Laugh, Cry and Dream!
I take my cane, and hat,
Exiting the Ring..
Jan 16, 2014
Jan 16, 2014 at 8:11 AM UTC
I dream often about the circus
A place I loved to go to as a child
Mesmerized by clowns and jugglers
Enthralled by animals from the wild
As the lights dim and the spot light shines
The ringmaster steps into its glow
"Welcome one, welcome all
to the Wilkie circus show! "
That's when things take a turn
As they always do in dreams
The spotlight finds me in the crowd
As the ringmaster calls my name
I find myself in the center ring
Dressed up just like a clown
Fuzzy yellow hair, big red nose
And grandma's paisley gown!
It turns even odder I'd say as the animals parade
With heads and bodies that are mismatched
Lions with the heads of monkey's
and zebras with the smiles of Cheshire cats
It doesn't get much stranger than that!
A flash of light and everything changes
I find myself on the high wire
My balance beam a giant matchstick
And "HELP" its been lit on fire!
That's when I start twirling it like a baton
As the crowd below chants my name
You never know what will happen next
In the circus of my dreams
Nov 23, 2013
Nov 23, 2013 at 12:19 PM UTC
you are splatter-painting in my living room
bright red like blood,
like the light in the room from that day you took me away
framed in the center.
"Oh."
we chase and try to catch the moon, but it isn’t out tonight, so
we hold each other instead.
I use my garden as a tightrope and you challenge me like a ringmaster.
I’m in a spangled leotard, turning for you, charming under the ink sky, and you go inside to make me some smores.
You said you couldn’t stay over because you had work in the morning, but I woke up to your elbows and my coffee.
Jul 10, 2014
Jul 10, 2014 at 11:44 PM UTC
incessant vendors hawk their wares
popcorn, peanuts sold to you
ferocious beast tamed with chair
fortune teller leaves you blue
flirtatious girl on painted pony
promises to thrill, all plunder
not much real here, all is phony
trapeze artists paint by number
high wire acts above a net
flying past the bears and seals
photographs to catch the moment
ten dollar dogs to seal the deal
******* up shoes of circus clowns
magician shows his sleight of hand
children smile at painted frowns
the ringmaster this band commands
big top wonder, smoke and mirrors
he beckons crowds to catch the scent
*“oh young at heart, come gather here
to find the truth within my tent”*
Nov 16, 2013
Nov 16, 2013 at 8:49 PM UTC
Crazy Circus (just a wrap)
We're runnin' like chickens with our heads cut off,
Squealing like piggies round the old food trough,
Stuck on a treadmill and we can't get off,
It's a crazy circus
Lost and confused, walkin in a trance,
Common sense needs a second chance,
But time is runnin out gotta change our stance,
Such a crazy circus
Just lookin' for respect we think we know
But the real truth is you reap what you sow
Under the bigtop we're up on the stage
Spillin' and killin' lost in a rage
Why can't we just turn the page
Of this crazy circus
Strutin' our stuff actin' real cool
Posin' in the mirror ready for a duel
Now who do you think is the real fool
What a crazy circus
The old ringmaster we're the main attraction
Always lookin' for some kind of action
Spinnin' our wheels losin' our traction
In this crazy circus
Just lookin' for respect we act like we know
But the real truth is you reap what you sow
Gomer LePoet...
Mar 12, 2010
Mar 12, 2010 at 3:44 AM UTC
People say that I'm foolish,
a bundle of velocity.
These magnificent stylings,
the simple joy of being me.
Stares curious and curiouser,
cocked eyebrows and murmurs.
Astonished minds bleat society,
cower from smiling performers.
Oct 12, 2010
Oct 12, 2010 at 1:12 PM UTC
Crazy Circus (just a wrap)
We’re runnin’ like chickens with our heads cut off,
Squealing like piggies round the old food trough,
Stuck on a treadmill and we can’t get off,
It’s a crazy circus
Lost and confused, walkin in a trance,
Common sense needs a second chance,
But time is runnin out gotta change our stance,
Such a crazy circus
Just lookin’ for respect we think we know
But the real truth is you reap what you sow
Under the bigtop we’re up on the stage
Spillin’ and killin’ lost in a rage
Why can’t we just turn the page
Of this crazy circus
Strutin’ our stuff actin’ real cool
Posin’ in the mirror ready for a duel
Now who do you think is the real fool
What a crazy circus
The old ringmaster we’re the main attraction
Always lookin’ for some kind of action
Spinnin’ our wheels losin’ our traction
In this crazy circus
Just lookin’ for respect we act like we know
But the real truth is you reap what you sow
Gomer LePoet...
Apr 30, 2013
Apr 30, 2013 at 5:19 PM UTC
The horses and dancers, the acrobats too.
The ringmaster and all the beasts in the zoo.
At the end of the show, received huge adulation.
With thunderous cheers and a standing ovation.
But the funny men with baggy pants and large shoes
Got a different reaction, thrown fruit and loud boo’s.
Well their smiles turned to rage and confused irritation
As they stood there and suffered the crowds indignation.
They ripped off their noses and popped their balloons,
No more will with they play for these mindless buffoons.
So they piled into their car and it’s needless to say,
As they drove off, the clowns were quite angry that day
Jan 31, 2021
Jan 31, 2021 at 3:27 PM UTC
They sit in a corner
giggling like little Japanese school girls
hide in the shadows of the decent crowd
and manage to escape from the ringmaster
the entire day
but
the ringmaster knows
what they are planning
she keeps an eye on them
even when they think she isn't looking
but she IS shadowing them
while they are hiding in the shadows
she's waiting for them to attempt and fail
so that she can twist their ears
a full 360 degrees
and suspend them from learning
new tricks and acts
stopping them from entering the grounds
which is definitely a dream come true for them
their joker faces
lighting up like Christmas lights
the moment they hear the news
when they leave
we might finally learn something
but time will fly
and the silence won't last long
because they WILL come back
and when they'll return
we might leave
because they will destroy the silence
make our heads explode
and make our eyes pop out
just so that they can giggle once again
and hide in the shadows of the decent crowd
Mar 26, 2014
Mar 26, 2014 at 10:17 AM UTC
Like the clowns we laughed at life
We would joke about the day
But we forgot that just like a clown
The make up is removed by tears
In my life, I would brave the high wire
If I fell you would be my safety net
But now alone, I will walk the tightrope
Putting on a brave face, my net is gone
We were acrobats when we made our love
We flew through the air, catching each other
But now when I attempt to take that leap
I can see that that space you had is empty
I am the ringmaster now of my destiny
Sitting here all alone in this heartbreak circus
But this circus is closed now, it can never open
Now alone I will enter the cage, and face my lions
copyright Chris Smith 2010
Jan 18, 2010
Jan 18, 2010 at 7:19 PM UTC
Tightrope
W a l k e r s
ABOVE
dangle the audience’s heads
bats
Jugg ler’s throw balls chairs.
ringmaster conquers all
caged lionsbears - beasts
popcorn spills on the
ground
as children gaspinawe
horses lavishly decorated
clowns abhorred
laughter radiates in the arena
trapeze act
grand Finale
discarded peanuts
linger
behind
-marissa navedo
Mar 29, 2012
Mar 29, 2012 at 2:45 AM UTC
Rain of water
Turns to rain of blood.
A reign of terror,
Falling from above.
A maniacal laughter rings out
Like a sinister clown.
We have porcelain faces
With a painted frown.
Riots erupt,
Fear is obsolete;
We have been here before,
No point in a retreat.
Progress?
None is made.
Stuck in a dark setting,
Ringmaster of a black parade.
Aug 26, 2014
Aug 26, 2014 at 9:29 PM UTC
****** ****** and more ******
Nothing but bores.
Who gives a ****
If NOBODY scores.
***** scream, kick 'n moan.
**** man, life can be such a
drone.
Puppet
Muppet
Ringmaster
Master Key
Leave it open - all the more to
See.
Human traffic
Nothing but static
Looky here
Looky there
Try a little harder and MAYBE you'll C
Everything is all around....
Everywhere.....
Tracey
Aug 15, 2013
Aug 15, 2013 at 1:17 PM UTC