The story behind this tragic event has been written repeatedly in the headlines of news outlets across the U.S., sharing similar stories of senseless gun violence happening everywhere. This one happened in Seattle and took the lives of two fellow musical artists. I knew them as street performers but Drew and Joe had moved on to carve a significant niche for their talents in the Seattle music scene. The song wrote itself almost immediately after the event which stole their lives. I was advised not to share this tale of woe at that time out of respect for those closest to Drew and Joe.

The Circus Clown Has Just Passed Away 2018 Reggie Miles All rights reserved The circus clown has just passed away Was he in the wrong place on that fateful day? Clownin round in some sleezy cabaret Drownin his troubles in cheap cabernet Drownin in cheap cabernet He wasn't stickin his head near the lion's ferocious bite That's the lion tamer's greatest delight He wasn't swingin so high way up in the air Like the man on the flyin trapeze would dare Swingin so high in the air He wasn't tryin to swallow too many swords As the daredevil had done so often before He wasn't tossin round razor sharp machete blades Like the juggler loved doin without any aid Riskin it all on a blade He wasn't liftin a thousand pounds of steel Like the strongman could do with such vigor and zeal He wasn't walkin a tightrope without a net Like all the funambulaters that he had met Who pirouette their high wire minuet - He wasn't takin a walk with his tiny pet mouse Too close to the circus elephant's house Which caused a stampede of pachyderms That squashed him to jelly, flat as a worm A clown flavored pachyderm pancake confirmed He wasn't nappin in the fat lady's bed till late As she came home early with her red hot date And hopped in the sack with the Siamese twins Grease paint would've been all that remained of him A stain on the sheets oh so grim He wasn't launched from a cannon, over the crowd With an earsplitting explosion so very loud And set soaring skyward through smoke and cloud Like the human cannonball had always wowed He vowed never to be so very proud He wasn't racin a steed through fiery rings Or doin a multitude of other circusy things Like wrestlin crocodiles with his bare hands Or playin subcontrabass tuba in the circus band Groovin a tune with the band - He wasn't balancin an aardvark on the tip of his nose Hula hoopin while unicyclin and recitin prose He wasn't twistin balloon animals for the tattooed lady Or doin anything anyone would consider shady Oh but how he loved those tattooed ladies He was just workin one liners with a friend at the bar Sharin a drink with a fellow circus star When, there, in the doorway, stood a man with a gun That's no way to go for a clown so young For a clown who was so very young The clown asked, with a smile, have you bullets in there? Or are ya just shootin blanks? But the man only stared Then, without a word, he emptied his gun And that was the end of the clown and his fun The end of the clown and his fun - Life is as fragile as one-ply toilet paper You can wipe yourself with it but you might regret it later Live your dreams while you can with love and with grace There's no tellin when you'll be starin death in the face Live your dreams with love and with grace -