The Sidewalk Juggler

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

Kathy & I visited Marion, NC this past Saturday during their annual Mountain Glory Festival. This particular festival weekend is the only Saturday that  Bruce’s Fabulous Foods, one of our favorite eateries, is open.  The are typically a Monday-Friday lunch-only restaurant.  We get there as often as we can, but their schedule and ours don’t often overlap.

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

After our yummy lunch, we spent some time walking Main Street and checking out the vendors and performers.  We came across this guy, The Sidewalk Juggler, also known as Kyle Brown, who is a professional juggler.  This guy is good!

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

I think the thing that impressed me the most was the effortlessness with which he performed his act, smiling and joking with his audience all the time.  It’s clear that this is someone who truly loves his job.  This is evident not just from the constant smile on his face, but also because only love for your profession would inspire someone to work the number of hours that he obviously had to work in order to learn to do what he does.

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

This is hard work, and about as tough as it can get, I think.  Completely dependent on the generosity of others through their tips, his performance truly makes or breaks his livelihood. But talk about a portable skill!  This guy can work anyplace where there are people!  As I understand it from his Facebook page, his territory is ‘Western North Carolina.’  Check out his page and his YouTube videos.

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

My photos hardly do him justice, but I managed to capture a few frames that show the passion and concentration that this guy obviously has for his work.  I didn’t really appreciate it while I was taking the photos, but later on I thought about it and realized what a dedicated effort someone like this guy has to put into his profession.

"The Sidewalk Juggler" performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina
“The Sidewalk Juggler” performs at the Mountain Glory Festival in Marion, North Carolina

4 thoughts on “The Sidewalk Juggler”

  1. We missed each other by about 30 minutes, it seems. I arrived there a bit late. They were packing up all of the stuff and closing down the festival. Vanessa lives right around the corner from there. We walked up there around 4:30. I had my camera in-hand and was ready to do some photography, but it was a bit too late. I did, however, see the juggler, standing on the side, stuff packed up, top hat sitting on a seat – that was about the extent of the excitement. LOL

  2. Yep, juggling something I would feel awkward doing in front of people, as well as singing. Best to keep those talents hidden. Again, nice shots of the experience.

    1. Yeah, you wouldn’t want too many people to know about your juggling talent. Next thing you know you would have to juggle for your passengers. 🙂

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