The Jester

The Jester

Mary Caroline Whims

Put thyself into the trick of singularity...
—Shakespeare, Twelfth Night

Bring me your motliest cap
and I will wear that.
Give me two curled-up shoes
with jingling bells.
Riddle me this: could a quip in a dunce's mouth
outsmart a sage?
Or might it mock the dark?

A jester in fear of his life
won't tell a joke twice,
for the sword hanging over his head keeps him light on his toes.
But I'll go turn a jig
in the places where dead men lie
and lay out my grievances there
under the sky
and I will forget
all the terror I haven't seen yet
for you are the glint to my eye:
and if I but make you grin, I'll have done well.

---

Mary Caroline Whims
Poet & Editor

Mary Caroline's poetry has been published in First Things. A recent graduate of Hillsdale College, she is a two-time recipient of the Barnes Award for Excellence in Poetry. You can read more of her work on Instagram @marycarolinewrites

Photography by Colin Lloyd