The man in the mirror has just donned makeup, White paint has covered his swarthy skin, Blue eye-shadow accentuates the sadness in his eyes Red lips, slightly turned down at the corners Add to his unhappy appearance. When he enters the circus ring in glittering costume And conical hat, he will not smile, He will not laugh, or make others laugh. The rest of the troop will have big shoes, Red noses, yellow hair, water filled buttonholes. He will be the man in charge, the instigator, Will lead the others into mayhem, The audience will hate him, the children Boo him, but without him The show would not go on.
by Joyce Walker
Joyce has previously had work published in other magazines including, Apostrophe, Aireings, Envoi, Orbis, Quantum Leap, World Wide Writers, Writers’ Forum and The Black Rose and has also been published in several anthologies.
photo by Wikimedia Commons
Aayo Magazine 