Married to a Joke Teller - March12, 2023

never during our courting

or in the 28 years of dinners

car trips or tv watching

did he say “have you heard

the one about . . .?”

now he collects them like

used stamps old coins

in new albums in his mind

ready to pull on out for a quick tell

they’re clean but getting riskier

as success makes him bolder

still goofy dad gags

mixed with some shaggers and daggers

he must have heard somebody

tell one in a crowded room

that chased away awkwardness

someone boosted by laughter

lifted from anonymity

allowed to move up the ladder

and escape the floodwaters

of social obscurity

but I see calculation in his new venture

one or two witty tales at the most

enough to gain a free pass into

the trendy level of a group

perhaps “funny old Joe” fears that

saying a few more might push

him nearer those sweaty stage lights

closer to the single bright spotlight

of crowd-pleasing attention

with no guarantee

there won’t be deafening silence