He caught a glimpse of his face reflected in the bottle. God, he looked pale; partly because of the residue of the makeup, partly because he was old. At 50, he should be considered “middle-aged,” but after 35 years working in the circus full-time, he considered himself old.

I heard distant, cheerful chirping: so sweet and reminding me of the summers of my childhood, where my bedroom window was just steps from the woods and I would hear a chorus of songbirds seemingly trying to wake me every morning from my deep, dreamless sleep. As I listened more intently, I noticed the chirping was closer, and from one bird. Chirp, pause, chirp, pause. It was almost rhythmic and…digital.