One of the weird side effects of an active mind and too little required activity in retirement is making odd mental connections. Here is one of mine for today.
One of the great American myths is running away to join the circus. It pops up in song and fiction plus on TV every now and then. I suppose it really did happen some, maybe quite a bit.
What you never seem to read or hear is the other end of the story. The people or situation the kid, usually a boy, ran away from. Those he left behind.
Where are the tragic stories of mothers pining for their runaway sons, families searching for the missing child, stories of a long-lost brother? Folks like sad stories but I don't remember many of these featuring a brother or son lost to the circus.
I've read of sons who went to sea, and the families left behind. But not stories of "we lost a kid to the circus."
Do you suppose they were mostly kids nobody would miss much? Troubled kids? Stepchildren? Kids leaving an abusive, drunken home? It seems likely.
I also wonder how many kids who somehow attached themselves to a circus ended up being molested by troupe pedophiles? It seems a likely scenario in a subculture where violating sexual norms might be overlooked or tolerated.
Anyway, that's my poser for today. Hat tip to the James Darren lyric for the title.
