Valerie Bellefleur Poet Narrative

Carnival 1914

He was born with no arms or legs
And put in a carnival at the age of six
Freak shows were big then
Took a wandering mind off unpleasant things
Like going to war
Between the bearded lady and the alligator man
He sat on a box
Propped up for all to see
They filed in and stared and pointed
And when he grew they found him
A bigger box
The children brought their children
To point and ask why as 
They sucked on their candy apples
And held tight to parents' hands
Who took them back at dusk
To a real home...

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James Foulk August 23, 2008 at 6:14 PM yes I remember those freak shows, they came to the Iowa State Fair during the 50's, I remember seeing Jo Jo the dog face boy and many others and they were not right, but that is the way it was. this was very moving piece you wrote.