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Music, silly faces, balloons, water spurting here and there, and performers juggling around in glittery outfits, take action amongst a sea of laughter. “Come watch the show,” she shouts from deep within. For a short while, the children on the Greek Island of Lesbos are transported. Overcome with joy, a simple laugh that they haven’t experienced for weeks, had painted itself on their little innocent faces. It’s a very beautiful thing to see, to see children become children again and bringing a moment of relief to anxious parents. These are not the only faces that Sabine Choucair has seen, and I am guessing not the last ones too.

Sabine Choucair is the co founder of a group called Clown Me In and started clowning all around the world after her studies in London. She first met members of Clowns Without Borders in Lebanon in 2011 and was invited to perform with them. From here on starts Sabine’s story of clowning, of bringing laughter to people in need, a humanitarian work that has love and selflessness at the core of it. Playing with people seems to be something that comes natural to her. Her biggest challenge to date is finding a bubble soap solution for the perfect act!

There amongst the laughter and the cheers lies a face that few have seen, a face that hides behind the make up and the big hair do. Behind the mask, behind the smile,behind the colorful clothes, and behind the veil of enormous smiles, is a woman that is all heart and compassion. She’s a clown. She puts on her make up to make the children smile, colored suits, and great big boots in her clown like style, doing funny things with her funny hair, making people happy as at the clown in her they stare. She makes children laugh when she pretends to fall, lots and lots of water she squirts everywhere, over all the people and high up in the air. She is such a funny woman who loves the children so. She is there to entertain and give those little broken hearts a glow.

A face to light up any place, tricks that astound, colorful in the suit, Laughter all-around, and kids enjoying the moment. Adults watch the show. Amazement takes over everybody. They clap and applaud for more. If only the world could smile. If only we could recapture yesterday. If only we could change their fate. A clown represents a child in all of us, before we lost our innocence along the way. Children just live in the moment and that’s a good thing. Sabine paints smiles today on small faces that feel like they have been abandoned by the world a long time ago. She believes that even if she could make them happy for a moment then it’s worthwhile, knowing to a sad face, she could bring a smile. If that is not love then I wonder what love is.

Because of women like Sabine who make me believe that every now and then, someone will shine through the crowd and inspire me to be a better person, I #livelovelebanon and I will #fighton

The picture I posted I took from a website (nor.org) and it shows Sabine, with Clowns Without Borders, perform for children in June at a Syrian refugee camp in the eastern town of Chtaura, Lebanon.

If you’d like to see her in action, I found this little clip online:

https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/642088932599284/

She also has a blog that you can follow:

http://sabinechoucair.blogspot.com