…The circus came to town.
I grew up in South Bend, Indiana.
Each summer, the great Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus made a stop for just one day.
My dad would wake us five brothers up at 6AM after the circus train had arrived the night before.
He would drive us down to the train station and there they were; the glorious rail cars containing the entire circus with all its animals, workers, performers and equipment.
As a ten year old, I was mesmerized!
The first to be unloaded were the elephants because it was their job to pull the wagons on wheels to the county fair grounds a few miles away.
There were railroad ties piled alongside the tracks that we would sit on to watch this miraculous event come to life.
The first tent to be assembled was the food tent because a hot breakfast had to be served to everyone.
We would then go to the fairgrounds to watch the assembly of the big top.
In the late afternoon we returned home and brought mom with us to see the show that night.
The following morning, the circus train was sitting on a siding in Chicago.
Thank you dad!
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