Funning Ones

I wrote this poem a few years ago to Deanna. It started out as a Valentine's Day poem but went in another direction. I think about it often because it holds a basic truth for those of us who "make up stuff" more than we should.

Funning Ones

Those who rely
on rhetoric’s repertoire
of playful puns,
mocking metaphors,
wayward wit,
teasing tone
and irreverent irony
to sport
with friends
(and enemies)
risk misinterpretation,
which often adds
to the mirth.

But when the
funning ones intend
sincerity,
truth,
and honesty,
others may feel
they have cried “Wolf!”
too many times
by hiding real feelings
under a mask
of wordplay.