12/31/2024
I have been wanting to make some version of this post for a while…for 6 months to be exact. It feels like something I have to do before I can post some sort of happy photo montage of all the fun performances of 2024…and it comes with huge feelings of overwhelm and sadness. But it feels necessary for me, personally, as another healing step. Today is 6 months since “the fire”. The building and the subsequent rubble is now gone, and it feels more important to me to try and remember all the things that ever happened there…I remember the first day I walked in, looked up, and said to Justin & Melissa, “you’re going to let me rig here, right?” (See pic) We had so many classes…rehearsals, Shapeshifter Circus, Rated R…aerialists from all over the world visited over the years. And I got to learn how much it all meant to so many people during the outpouring of support in the days after the fire. Circus is important. That warehouse contained a lot of things…costumes, gear…but it wasn’t the things that made it special, it was the people…the community we created, how we challenged, uplifted, and co-created together. I am extremely grateful for the memories and I hope that you will share in helping me remember what once was. My life has changed a lot in the last 6 months…I still do circus, but a lot less of it, and my relationship to it is different. Negotiating that change has been difficult and raw, like lying on a bed of nails. Bicycling has been the unexpected savior of my mental health and my way of processing, and I feel so thankful for it. If you have read all of this, thank you for your support during this time of my life. Thank you welcoming the new me, as I find my new and ever-evolving identity. I’m a lot more emotional of a person these days and I think it is a good thing. I love you guys ❤️🎪
