The Grease Paint Smile
By John Herlihy

I try to tell it to anyone who listens like it is,
Not sounding false like other people’s fizz.
It’s all as true sounding as I can truly make it.
Nobody likes the dull parts, so then I just fake it,
Whether I am talking through a hole in the wind,
Or writing down poems that I can hardly rescind.
The story that I send forth is as good as it gets,
Even the warts and boils come with no regrets.
Nobody told me that I had a story worth tellin’;
Nobody suggested I had anything worth sellin’.
That’s why I’ve ended up giving all away free;
Even my friends pass when they know it’s just me.
When the right time comes, I’ll put the pen down,
Wipe off the grease paint smile like a sad clown.