Laughter and Weeping

Laughter and Weeping


Laugh and the world laughs with you:¹
A phrase that we all know by heart
Unless it's at your boss, then eschew
Guffawing right from the start.
He might play along, even quip
To cover his embarrassment
Ere he grins, handing you a pink slip,
Removing doubt as to what his mirth meant!

Since the time of the Greeks, long ago,
Ying and yang of emotions have played.
Masks, tragic and comedic, show
Both sentiments have been portrayed
Intertwined, like darkness and light.
Opposites, each depend on
The other to heighten the pointed
Impact of the muse's spawn.
Comingled, they don't seem disjointed.

Weep and you weep alone,¹ it's said.
Each lonesome tear runs down your nose,
Echoing the sadness in your head,
Prompting thoughts that the world really blows.
In spite of sorrow, those feelings of dread
Now depart. The heart can transpose
Grief for giggling in its stead.


A challenge from "Invalid Item" 
Muse: Miko
Her Round 1 selections:
Convention: Allusion - Where a poem makes reference to another poem or text.
Form: Symbiotic Acrostic (Variation Selected: Rhymed) The Symbiotic Acrostic was created by PatrickB . For details, please see "Invalid Item" .
Genre: Comedy

Before you ask
eschew - to abstain or keep away from; shun; avoid
guffaw – to laugh
quip - a clever or witty remark or comment
pink slip - notice of dismissal from one's job
spawn - offspring, children.

¹"Solitude," Ella Wheeler Wilcox