The Circus I Never Saw
12 Jun 2026
I must have been five or six years old.
I went to Colégio Estadual Tomaz Edison Andrade Vieira, in the Borba Gato neighborhood of Maringá, in the state of Paraná, Brazil.
Next to the school there was a large vacant lot. One day a circus showed up there.
Back then, when a circus came to town, it was an event. The kids talked about it during class, at recess, and on the way home. They said there were animals, clowns, and attractions I had never seen.