I’d blown the birthday candles out
and sliced up all the cake
and then I did a silly thing.
I made a grave mistake.

I chose to do a clever trick
I’d seen performed before,
a trick to stun my party guests,
to dazzle them, for sure.

And so I grabbed the table cloth
and yanked with all my might,
anticipating gasps of awe
and squeals of pure delight.

But sadly, nothing stayed in place,
I can’t forget the sound
of glasses, bowls and dinner plates
all crashing to the ground.

The birthday cake, the party pies
and every other treat
went hurtling briefly through the air
then landed at our feet.

I could have been an instant star
but I’d just blown my chance.
If only I had made the time
to practise in advance.

Photo from Pexels by Ivan Samkov