Sword Swallower

Before the Sword Swallower took the stage,
 his assistant rolled out a cart
 arrayed with a variety of small objects.
 Then the great showman himself
 emerged, bearing the implement of his trade.
 His blade was so long that, while he held it straight,
 it arched back with the tip hovering just above his scalp.
 The audience laughed,
 for nobody believed it possible that
 such a weapon might ever be consumed.
 But all at once the Sword Swallower threw back his head and
 thrust the blade upward, forcing its point down his throat.
 He compelled it in some ingenious way
 until nearly the whole length had disappeared.
 Certain members of that breathless crowd might have seen the look of
 ecstasy which washed over the sword swallower's face at that moment.
 As he drove the last of it down,
 the tip emerged from his antipodal orifice.
 He turned around so that everyone could
 see it protruding from the back of his pants.
 The sharp edge glittered under the heavy lights.
 Then the sword swallower shuffled over to the little cart where he
 proceeded to slice up the objects one
 at a time, amidst a standing ovation.