Halloween

When I got the call
That grandfather died,
I wore a clown suit,
Big and white with
Blue and red dots,
And a tall clown hat.

Rat-tat-tat-tat.
Tat-tat-tat.

My face was plastered,
Clown enamel white,
Painted red lips,
And a red round nose,
Staring at the mirrors
In the back of the store.

Rip and tore, war and gore.

My boss had told me,
Go and get some rest.
So there I sat,
A thousand clowns
Staring from the mirrors;
Faces laughing, faces crying.

Sighing and crying
And lying and dying.

That night on the news
People were dying.
Machine guns fired,
Rat-tat-tat-tat.
Bullets tore, spreading gore.
Victims lying, sighing, crying.

My grandfather died
On Halloween.
Sadder news we all have seen.
That night, at the party,
Nadia laughed. She said,
Clowns don't go to parties
When their grandfathers pass.