The town was in an...
Illustration
The town was in an uproar! The Clown was coming back! No one knew him by any other name -- only "The Clown," a circus dropout whom no one had ever seen without his face paint, orange yarn hair, polka-dotted jump suit, and big floppy shoes. He had simply shown up one day to talk and forever changed all their lives. For despite his rather ridiculous appearance, his words were filled with wisdom.
That was several years ago, shortly after the flood that literally swept away half their homes, pushed the disaster relief agencies beyond their limits, and as time went on, began to separate the citizens of the community into "haves" and "have-nots." Then, seemingly out of nowhere, The Clown had come, making suggestions about how to rebuild, helping the haves see the have-nots as resources rather than burdens, helping the have-nots to see the haves as persons in need of an unusual degree of understanding and love if they were to be released from the prison of their selfishness.
But after he'd been with them only a short time, The Clown had vanished as suddenly as he had appeared. Now he was coming back!
As he approached and saw the crowd gathered in welcome, The Clown knew it was time to face them without his facade. He stepped up into the bandstand, waved a silent greeting, and began to smear his face with cold cream. "What's he doing?" people asked one another in hushed, anxious whispers. The Clown, still silent, reached into his bag for a towel and began to wipe away the paint, to wipe away the face they recognized as The Clown.
Suddenly the whispering and murmuring stopped! The crowd gasped in collective surprise. John? John Jones from Elm Street? John Jones was The Clown? How could this be?
With the paint removed, John lifted off his orange wig and stepped to the microphone. "It's really very simple," he said. "Three years ago, would you have listened to John Jones from Elm Street?"
-- Fannin
That was several years ago, shortly after the flood that literally swept away half their homes, pushed the disaster relief agencies beyond their limits, and as time went on, began to separate the citizens of the community into "haves" and "have-nots." Then, seemingly out of nowhere, The Clown had come, making suggestions about how to rebuild, helping the haves see the have-nots as resources rather than burdens, helping the have-nots to see the haves as persons in need of an unusual degree of understanding and love if they were to be released from the prison of their selfishness.
But after he'd been with them only a short time, The Clown had vanished as suddenly as he had appeared. Now he was coming back!
As he approached and saw the crowd gathered in welcome, The Clown knew it was time to face them without his facade. He stepped up into the bandstand, waved a silent greeting, and began to smear his face with cold cream. "What's he doing?" people asked one another in hushed, anxious whispers. The Clown, still silent, reached into his bag for a towel and began to wipe away the paint, to wipe away the face they recognized as The Clown.
Suddenly the whispering and murmuring stopped! The crowd gasped in collective surprise. John? John Jones from Elm Street? John Jones was The Clown? How could this be?
With the paint removed, John lifted off his orange wig and stepped to the microphone. "It's really very simple," he said. "Three years ago, would you have listened to John Jones from Elm Street?"
-- Fannin
