You’re a small kid in Sydney
And the circus is coming to town
And you’re really excited
Because you get to meet the ringmaster!
Even though you haven’t met before
He’s an old family friend
Because his mom knew your Abuelo
From when she served in the Women’s Army Corps and was stationed in Manilla
 
Dinny The Ringmaster
Is one of the coolest people you have ever met
He is American and very tall and he does magic
“Make us fly Dinny!” we begged.
“The magic only works at the circus,” he said with a knowing twinkle in his eye.
It was a special treat to go to the circus
We were still small enough to need a nap
We had to sleep beforehand, or we weren’t allowed to go
 
My memories are blurry now
But I have sense of overwhelming happiness when I think back to that time
It was exciting, and fun
And having the ringmaster to dinner at our house was very glamorous
 
Twenty-odd years later
You reconnect on facebook
And promise to meet if you have ever happen to be in the same city
 
This week it happened
A call out of the blue
“Luisa, it’s Dinny! I’m in New York!”
And you squeal with delight
The circus is back!
Well, not the whole circus 
The daredevil clown with the giant hair
Bello Nock with Bello Mania! 
And Dinny is the MC
 
You get to go to the dress rehearsal
At the New Victory Theatre
The tech tables are still set up in the back
And even though you’re one of about 15 people in the audience
You have one of the best nights of theatre you’ve had in forever
You never stop laughing
The joy of the clown
The delight of the magic
The adrenalin from watching a grown man bicycle across a tight rope
Or climb a pole that reaches almost to the ceiling, and stand on an impossibly tiny box at the top of it to retrieve an errant red balloon
Which, once descended from the heights, he hands to you with a grin
And you’re not a 31-year-old cancer survivor living in New York
You’re five years old
And the world is magical and full of whimsy and delight
 
And you re-meet Dinny
And he is every bit as wonderful and fun as you remember
And you sit and chat for a bit in the green room
And you feel light and happy
And the next day, you’re still floating because
The circus made you fly.