The Big Circus
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#518 The Big Circus was created especially for Robert William
Shields at the age of 2 With Love From, Nanny & Papa February 14, 2002 Robbie had waited such a
long time for the circus to come to town.
He had always dreamed of seeing the
lions, elephants and clowns. Now
the time had finally come, and he was going to
see that in the town of Winthrop, Massachusetts, Robbie’s
dreams can become a reality. 4 “Welcome children, young and old, to the greatest show
around; to the place where animals, magic and entertainment can be found. Step
right up and take your seat, inside the tent so grand,” a friendly clown said
to Robbie and his
friends at the ticket stand. 7 Christina, Nanny, and Papa
stood patiently and waited to sit in place.
Suddenly a clown rushed out with a worried look on her face. “One of our clowns isn’t feeling well!” she said.
“I’m afraid he can’t do the show.
Would Robbie be willing to take his
place? That’s all I need to know.” 8 The
clown looked down and studied Robbie, then
smiled with great delight. “Would you
be willing to take his place?” You are
just the perfect height!” Robbie
looked at his friends with a great big grin, and
quickly agreed to go. “Hi, Robbie, my name is Coco, and tonight you’ll be in the
show.” Coco painted Robbie’s face white, and gave him
bright colored clothes. She topped Robbie’s head with a bright orange wig and put a red
ball on his nose. 11 And
just when Robbie was through getting dressed,
the lights in the tent went out. A
spotlight shone on the ringmaster, who started to walk and shout. “As we begin, please give your attention to
the cage just on my right. Where
Daniel, our fearless lion trainer, has worked both day and night.” 12 Six
giant beasts rushed into the cage, as Daniel cracked his whip. Robbie
thought to himself, “I could do that, but it’s
something I’d rather skip.” They jumped
through hoops and formed a line, and Robbie
thought it was funny, when a lion rolled onto his back, and showed the crowd
his tummy. 15 As Robbie looked up, at the very top of the tent, he had to guess the next act was a dangerous
event. Robbie
saw a clown step forward, and jump on a flying trapeze. After he swung a couple of times, he hung upside
down by his knees. 16 Suddenly,
it seemed to Robbie that everything happened at
once. Three separate groups came into
the tent to perform three different stunts.
First came a clown on a one-wheeled ride, as fast as he could go. Juggling things up in the air, he was sure
to steal the show. 19 In
the third ring was the funniest thing. Robbie thought he had
seen it all, when a mouse and seal team stunned the crowd with balloons and a
big bright ball. 20 The
circus fun went on and on. It seemed to
last all day. Clowns rolled in on a
fire truck, with hoses ready to spray. Christina, Nanny, and Papa got ready for a soak. But when confetti sprayed out, they laughed, and saw it was a
joke. 23 Robbie
was busy watching the show, and completely lost track of the time. He was
startled when he heard Coco say, “Get ready,
we’re next in line!” 24 “Get
ready for the big parade!” Coco said to Robbie
with a grin, “You get to ride an elephant that goes by the name of Big Ben.” Robbie’s
eyes grew wide and he laughed with delight when Coco pointed and said, “Climb
up this ladder to get on his back, and sit behind his head.” 27 Robbie climbed on the back
of Big Ben, who stood at least twelve feet high. And just as Robbie was settled in,
he heard the ring master cry, “Ladies and
gentlemen, I’m afraid to say we’re close to the end of our show, but we’d like
to give you one last act, before we let you go.” 28 “We’re
going to have a big parade, right here inside our tent, but I have a great
announcement to make, before we begin the event. The
one who’s going to lead the parade lives right here in your hometown. It brings me pleasure to present to you, Winthrop, Massachusetts’
own Robbie the clown!” 31 When
Robbie had gotten off Big Ben, and thanked him
for the ride, he went to find Coco the Clown and
give her a hug good-bye. On
the way home Robbie remembered the show, where
magic and wonder were found. Robbie knew he would
never forget the day the circus came to town.
“The Big Circus”