Jokesmith (second version)

Once upon a time I was fine.
Laughing with glee, able to dine.
Without whiskey or expensive beer.
Life of the party dying with cheer.

Now I'm sober and living uprightly.
One where I smile ever so brightly.
One full of pretend and old jokes.
I hide my loud pain with a funny cloak.

Howling at everyone in this room.
My face red as a blood-soaked moon.
Paint thinning and starting to show.
A rotting mask of a child eating crow.

I am a joker laughing with rage.
Dancing in a nice comfortable cage.
I'm a fool leading the pack with jest.
Singing trauma with melodrama zest.

The joke is on you for laughing along.
Cawing and cooing along to this song.
My soul is freshly squeezed in his wrath.
God will always have the last laugh.

Proverbs 14:13
Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief.