Xlibris Author| David Fly, My Life Under the Big Top

Xlibris Publishing introduces Rev. David Fly, author of My Life Under the Big Top.

 

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF MY LIFE UNDER THE BIG TOP — REFLECTIONS OF A COMIC, CLOWN, AND PRIEST

Xlibris Author| Rev. David Fly, My Life Under the Big TopMy Life Under the Big Top is part memoir and part theological reflection. David Fly, who has been an ordained priest in the Episcopal Church for over 50 years, began his comic career by winning a talent contest with a comic routine at the age of twelve, tells the story of his journey from standup comedy, to television clown, to the Episcopal priesthood. After three years as a clown with a five-day a week television program, he entered the seminary.

 

He humorously says, “Growing up was easy. It was just changing one costume for another!” Within a few years, the clown reemerged in his ministry. As he began to reflect on his experience, he realized that the circus, a world of mystery and wonder from which no one is excluded, is a apt description of the role of the Church in the world, which is called to play Stan Laurel to the world’s Oliver Hardy, exposing the folly of pretense and the vanity of pride.

 

 

 

WHO IS THE AUTHOR?

Xlibris Author| Rev. David Fly, My Life Under the Big TopIn the summer of 2016, I celebrated the 50th anniversary of my ordination as an Episcopal priest. There is a sense in which my entire life has been lived “on stage.” After my first win in a talent contest at age twelve, I partnered with another boy to become a comedy team known as “The Spider and the Fly.”

 

We toured much of the Midwest in the ’50s doing lip-syncs to comedy recordings. We played almost every venue including talent shows, service organizations, private parties and local and national television. After four years, I was hired as a clown for a children’s show in Springfield, Missouri.

 

I worked that job for three years and then entered an Episcopal seminary. After seminary, I served in urban, suburban, and rural ministries and was a college chaplain for thirteen years. I am married and have five daughters.

 

 

 

LITERARY INFLUENCES

I’ve always been an avid reader but I would say that my primary influence in the literary field would have to be the nature of my work. I have been challenged each week, for over 50 years, to write sermons each Sunday that both connect with and challenge the people to whom I’m preaching. Furthermore, many have asked me to do retreats and workshops which requires a great deal of writing. And, as many preachers will tell you, there is no escaping critiques! These have helped me hone my skills. Because I am, by nature, a story-teller, the stories of growing up in an extended family have been used extensively in my presentations and, in 2002, became fodder for my first memoir Faces of Faith — Reflections In a Rearview Mirror. We are now in the process of reprinting that book to accompany Big Top.

 

 

Xlibris will return with Rev. David Fly in Part 2.

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