Fools

I can’t fool you. You’re way too smart for that.
No magic here: there’s nothing up my sleeve
(And anyway, what do those tricks achieve?),
No ribbons, pulling rabbits from my hat,
Nor epic structures raised from something flat.
So let’s just take a moment as you grieve
(I do confess I practised to deceive
While I was grinning like a Cheshire Cat).

No one is smiling now. I made one quip,
And terror claimed the room. I was at fault,
But you should take me with a grain of salt
Like any prisoner under the whip.
The earth’s rotation made me lose my grip,
The more fool I; someone should call a halt.