The court jester

Well, your honor, you pass your judgment in a hurry

but if it please the court, I now request a jury

I'll plea my case to a panel of my peers

for one thing I've learned after all these years

is to plan my case, and to case my plan

and never leave it in the hands, or the view, of one man

One man's view can become quite skewed

and the next thing you know the whole court's kangaroo'd

I'll take a chance on common-folk letting me walk free

and I don't ask that they be swayed by sympathy

Reality can be painful, of that I can confess

but not as painful as being oblivious to one's own mess

Judging, by nature, can make a man feel supreme

and in the common court of judgment, it's the same old theme

The writ that I read has no foundation...hollow words

and that kind of empty nest writing is for the birds

If that's your expert opinion, I request a brief voir dire

for how can a man comprehend joy if he's never shed a tear

I've neither been threatened nor coerced into entering my plea

Guilty, I raise my hands like the Joshua Tree

and I offer up a prayer as I solemnly swear

I thrive...I'm alive...due to my times of despair

for I have something to distinguish between the good and the bad

between the light and the dark, the happy and sad

An enlightened man once wrote, when discussing his pain

"You wouldn't enjoy the sunshine as much if you never got caught in the rain"

So as the court jester jests, what with my joking and fooling

the defense now rests, and could care less about your ruling