The Quiet Power of Joy

Nathaniel Allenby, Legacy, and the Cycle That Connects Us All
When General Edmund Allenby entered Jerusalem in 1917, he chose to walk. As the commanding officer of T.E. Lawrence, later known as Lawrence of Arabia, he understood that how one enters history matters. His leadership played a decisive role in the liberation of Israel, and his name remains embedded in the country’s geography through streets, bridges, and public landmarks. For his great-grand-nephew, Nathaniel Allenby, that moment is not simply historical. It is instructive.

Nathaniel Allenby has spent his life translating legacy into lived experience. Artist, circus performer, author, and entrepreneur, he has consistently explored what leadership looks like when it is grounded not in authority, but in service, creativity, and human connection.

That exploration became tangible in his early twenties, when Allenby embarked on a journey that would later become The Cycle of Kindness. Over several years, he pedaled 28,000 miles across 10 countries, primarily Western Europe, and 30 U.S. states, traveling by bicycle with no money, no technology, and no fixed plan. His survival relied entirely on trust.

The journey stripped life down to its essentials. Allenby lived and worked on permaculture farms, eco-villages, and intentional communities, exchanging labor, art, and storytelling for food and shelter. These communities offered living demonstrations of cooperation, sustainability, and shared responsibility. They also revealed how rare, and how necessary, genuine interdependence has become.

The emotional challenge of the journey proved as demanding as the physical one. Accepting help required vulnerability. Asking for support required humility. Over time, Allenby came to understand that generosity functions as a cycle. Kindness offered creates kindness returned. It moves through communities and between strangers, binding people together through trust rather than transaction.

That realization now fuels Allenby’s next chapter. He dreams of building an ongoing movement that encourages and incentivizes acts of generosity and kindness, not as isolated gestures, but as a cultural practice. He is currently in the process of founding a nonprofit organization to support this work and is actively seeking donors, partners, and app developers who wish to collaborate in transforming kindness into a measurable, scalable force for good. For Allenby, the question is no longer whether kindness works, but how broadly it can be implemented.

Running alongside this mission is Cirque Quirk, the San Diego-based professional circus entertainment company Allenby founded more than a decade ago. Now recognized as the city’s highest-rated circus entertainment company, Cirque Quirk delivers high-quality performances for corporate events, weddings, festivals, and private celebrations. The company has been especially honored to serve Jewish celebrations, including Purim events, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, and Chanukah gatherings, bringing joy, inspiration, and artistry to moments of deep communal significance. Cirque Quirk remains available for hire and is dedicated to creating magical, memorable experiences that foster connection.

Allenby’s creative output also includes Allenby Art, his visual art practice exploring themes of movement, transformation, and identity. The work reflects a life shaped by travel, uncertainty, and intentional community, offering viewers an invitation to pause and reflect.

Israel remains a powerful point of reference. With the Allenby name woven into the nation’s physical and historical landscape, Nathaniel speaks with deep respect for his family’s role in its past. He also speaks of aspiration, sharing his dream to visit Israel and spend time on a kibbutz, drawn to communal values that mirror the life he has lived across continents.

In a world marked by fragmentation, speed, and disconnection, Nathaniel Allenby offers a different model of influence. One rooted in joy, humility, and participation. His work reminds us that legacy is not static. It is something we choose to embody and create through how we live, connect, and care for one another.

Learn more about Cirque Quirk at cirquequirk.com and connect with Nathaniel Allenby, (619) 419-6703 or CirqueQuirk@gmail.com.