Sunday 22 February 2015

The Clown

All the children laughed at the clown,
But I knew someone who made everyone laugh knew more of life ,
than a joke could summarize.
And then I looked deep into the clown’s eye,
And there was a picture of such might,
Beneath all the mirth was so much pain in rewind,
People gone, people left, all the scars left,
And all they left was a joke.
And yet the clown paints his face
And that inner world gets lost in the maze.
And the children laugh.
And the pain subsides. 




56 comments:

  1. I think that clowns are really very very sad.. when only paint and laughter can keep the pain away.. very apt.

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  2. There is sadness underneath, and that really is sad.

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  3. you totally remind me of Charlie Chaplin's lines - My pain may be the reason for somebody's laugh.But my laugh must never be the reason for somebody's pain
    It rings so true for clowns!!

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  4. Sometimes everyone wants to be a clown, but only a true knows how to pull it off!

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  5. laughter is good medicine

    have a nice Tuesday

    much love...

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  6. one can never know the pains of the heart...a painted face face has 'pain' inside..great work

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  7. I like how you use "and" here, giving the sense that life rushes in this way for a clown. The poem might also work cut down to barest bones, without the makeup and costume, so to speak--though I wonder whether a true clown would ever be so exposed. Fine poem.

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  8. Contrary to what one sees they are not really a happy lot. The smiles are painted over and their antics more of a slapstick rather than wit! Wonderful write Suyash!

    Hank

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  9. I think your description is very true of clowns.

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  10. Sometimes the one that seems like a clown is the one with the most unhappiness deep inside. Great response to the prompt!

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  11. Laughter does help the pain subside. I find that people who have endured the deepest pain are likely to laugh the most often and the loudest.

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  12. i have a love/fear of clowns. So much is hidden behind a painted smile.

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  13. Robin Williams...

    I remember crying after hearing the news and spending the entire day revisiting his old movies, interviews, stand-up acts. It is heart-breaking to know how pain can be so well-hid. And people so easily deceived.

    Beautifully penned.

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  14. Such a compassionate poem… beautiful.

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  15. that's funny thoughts here.

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  16. Beautiful interpretation of the picture prompt!
    well done

    Cheers

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  17. Beautiful interpretation of the picture prompt!
    well done

    Cheers

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  18. This one touches the heart.

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  19. This seems like a true story for many people. We can't get past the fact that there is pain in life but the power of a good laugh is amazing.

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  20. I love clowns, particularly the sad ones. Somehow they have extra pathos because of being clowns.

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  21. sometimes the pain hides well behind the mask.
    well written!

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  22. It seems this speaker and I are one of the last few people who live in the land of Clowns Aren't So Bad. I love your poem's humanization of what lies within the mask. I think very few people actually look. But does who do... see something wonderful.

    My Magpie entry

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  23. Painted smiles, clowns often do scare me…

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  24. Such a sad story ... the clown makes us laugh, amidst his sorrows.

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  25. a crown is a magician with tricks known and sadness hidden.
    glad to see this story.

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  26. what discovery.
    a crown, a joke!

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  27. I have never understood clowns...this really got under their skin (or make up) and can't help thinking tears of a clown applies just right!

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  28. I have often thought of clowns as being most unhappy people. They wear a painted smile to hide the sadness they feel inside.

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  29. Very true, Suyash.
    We don't know what they feel as they hide behind the masks or make-up & painted faces...

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  30. the last two lines are stellar...

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  31. This very true and I think why I don't like clowns...because they really are so sad...it is their sadness that i pick up on and it engulfs me.

    Donna@LivingFromHappiness

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  32. Their mouths may smile, but their eyes, many times, are sad.

    Poppy

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  33. Scary! What a primal fear; at least for me.

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  34. You gave the clown a character and I think they do a good job of hiding their sorrows and pains behind the laughter~

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  35. Hiding behind a smile is something we have all done at one time or another. This is a well woven rendering of that character,

    Elizabeth

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  36. clown is very mysterious. maybe happy. maybe sad but no one can really guess what's behind the make-up. i feel while clowns are loved, they are hated as well too.

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  37. Amazing. Loved these lines:
    "And the children laugh.
    And the pain subsides."
    Nice interpretation of picture :)

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  38. Clowns are quite heavily made up, with reality hidden. Only at the end of the performance, is the real truth revealed..Usually a sad and lonely story..
    Excellent topic...

    Eileen

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  39. What a deep vision of those in life we use to laugh.

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  40. To me, clowns can either be scary or sad--I much prefer the sad I think--well done!!

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  41. "pain in rewind" I like that.

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  42. it is a painful peeling when you recall the dark part of your life.
    smart metaphor.

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  43. It's a circle of life, I guess, what is necessary to keep it going.

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  44. beautiful insights from the image provided.
    happy rally.

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  45. I have often reflected on the closeness between laughter and tears - humor and malice. It's very complex, and I think you've pointed it out well.

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  46. We all hide so much beneath a mask. Hayes Spencer is Kanzensakura

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  47. yeah - most of the clowns i met had that pain in their eyes...

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