Cirque Du Succès – A Poem

Words: Valentino Koch
Art: Valentino Koch
Audio: Valentino Koch

The circus is in town today.

Have you seen the posters?

They read “life’s a roller coaster, buy the ticket take the ride,”

While I’m supposed to stand outside the gate

Because the ticket man said

“You must be this high to ride”

And I’m not, great.

Instead I’ll teeter totter on a seesaw,

Pushing me weight with knees sore,

I say let them break,

Like the waves on the seashore,

My greed feeling the breeze screams,

“I need more”

But he doesn’t seem sure.

I’ve seen more,

It’s a heavy weight to carry,

I think it pays to be poor,

No flashing lights or bumping cars,

Leave the clowns and let them laugh,

Because the games are rigged no matter where you are.

But beyond the gate all could be honest,

Real and flawed,

For contentment is realised when want is ignored.

And my lord do I want to achieve that,

The irony isn’t lost on me,

Like the deficiency,

I can feel that.

It’s all a juggling act,

For one hand knows I should be on the ball,

But the other throws away responsibility

Waiting for the rest to fall

A constant motion while stuck in place.

I’m a jester juxtaposed just wanting for applause

before the curtains close in a cold embrace.

So roll up, roll up,

Come one, come all,

There is no restriction, criteria,

No dress code to uphold,

Be loud, be proud, and undoubtedly bold,

We welcome the downtrodden, down and out,

We welcome the downfall. 

For More: MEDIOCRE – A Poem