Stemming from an unceasing longing for something more, and an incalculable fear of what lies ahead, street mime Sam Clout said that he’s trapped inside this disappointing reality and is unable to get out. Despite searching for an exit, Clout says he’s failed to devise a way out of his invisible prison.
“It’s so difficult, this life. I’ve been trying to figure it out, maybe find a way to make it better. I used to think that reality was like an invisible box, but that can’t be true. If it was an invisible box I would have been able to escape from it, I have experience with such things. I think it’s actually more like an invisible rectangle, maybe an invisible sphere, definitely a shape not even a mime could escape from.”
Lacking both direction and a practical skillset, Clout says he’s not quite sure where he is in life or where he’s going. Having only the thirteen dollars and twenty seven cents earned in the last two years of street performing, Clout says he’s worried about the road ahead, and feels unprepared for the hurdles in his way.
“All my life I’ve had to overcome roadblocks. I’ve ran into so many invisible doors, but I always found the invisible knob and was able to walk through. But what if one day I’m walking and I run into an invisible door without an invisible knob? An invisible wall. How would I get past it? I could turn around and go the other way, but what if there’s another invisible wall there too? And in the other directions? What if I find myself surrounded by invisible walls? I’ve never had to deal with anything like that, I don’t even know what you would call something like that.”
Despite his fears, Clout says he hopes to find a new purpose in life and maybe some spare change in the street in order to avoid another morning showering in the sink at the local Denny’s.
“I think we all just need to find what we love to do in order to deal with the sad reality of life. I think that’s why I wasn’t able to deal with it in the past. I wasn’t meant to be a mime. I was meant to do something with more purpose, something that’ll actually make a difference.”
Having begun a new chapter in his life in the time since this interview, Clout said he finally feels fulfilled after starting a new career as a street juggler.