Nights At The Big Top

Posted on July 14, 2019 by Karima Hoisan
2016-Sharpe-Cirque-d-Hiver-Trapeze-15x38cms-Gouache-on-Fabriano-paper

Wendy Sharpe

Nights At The Big Top

 

We swing towards each other and then swing back…
like a high flying circus act, I’m afraid if I jump, you will lose your grip.
I’m afraid if I show what I’m feeling, I will fall…because you will let me go.
No net to catch our slip ups, no safety or trust…no security and no promises.

When we fall out of sync, we are worse than clumsy; we are dangerous,
and we have the power to leave the other in tatters on the mat.
At the bottom of everything,
it’s not really an act, it’s how we are together…we call it our love,
but sometimes it is just our pain, our unfixable folly, our bad timing.

There are those nights at the big top, when we are nothing less than perfection.
When your laugh and my tears make sense and we enjoy our crazy dichotomy.
We are glitter and skill and we know each other so well, we barely need to nod
to get it right.
I would buy every ticket that night just to watch us soar and not share one minute of our glory with the rest of the world.

I lack the training, I fear, to pull this off; I need costumes and lots of painted smiles.
I need to perfect my balance and not swing too far forward nor too far back.
This complex routine, intricate act, these elaborate scenes, need practice,
and  no surrender.
The lure of the magic, the bright lights, the music, even with the failures,
still makes me want to get it right.

We swing towards each other and then swing back…
like a high flying circus act, I’m afraid if I jump, you will lose your grip.
I’m afraid if I show what I’m feeling, I will fall…because you will let me go.
No net to catch our slip ups, no safety or trust…no security and no promises.

Karima Hoisan
July 14th, 2019
Costa Rica

 

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15 Responses to Nights At The Big Top

  2. Puzzles of the Soul says:
    July 14, 2019 at 9:27 am

    Love it, you manage to find the most interesting subjects to reflect relationships.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  3. daleinnis says:
    July 14, 2019 at 12:43 pm

    Very evocative metaphor for a difficult relationship! And really for anything else in life that doesn’t quite come naturally, but we really want, for whatever reason, to work. Another insightful piece!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  4. Hoyt says:
    July 14, 2019 at 7:17 pm

    Amazing Ruca! This high flying masterpiece depicts the rocky path of any relationship. From a perfect sync to sudden peril. You are an outstanding conjuror of thoughts, metaphors and words. I am ceaselessly enchanted by your gifts in this arena.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Karima Hoisan says:
    July 14, 2019 at 8:03 pm

    I am adding a comment my dear artist friend, Jan Betts. made for this poem as she found it daunting to post in WordPress:( I have heard this before:)
    “Thank you, Karima, for another amazing experience with your words, poetry…..this poem is sheer genius at describing the complex dance of relationship! All of it… the fears, insecurities, the magic when it finds the kind of balance that makes magic… the instability that happens around trust or lack thereof. The emotional pain of the dance, the rewards….”

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Karima Hoisan says:
      July 14, 2019 at 8:25 pm

      Thank you Jan, this is an area you and I have talked about a lot…The pain and the rewards of living a relationship intelligently and yet…letting yourself be swept up in it..Like being carried down a raging river and yet remembering all the tips you learned to save yourself in just such a situation..We are helpless and we are not..all at the same time if we have clarity of mind (that superpower of thinking before reacting) we can probably make it to shore..make it last..make it all more enjoyable and keep the magic alive!

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      Reply
  6. lancesheridan says:
    July 16, 2019 at 9:20 am

    Fabulous work, Karima, quite fabulous!

    Liked by 1 person

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