Public Speaking

I am proud of my profession,
I am a public speaker.
There are many others
but they’re somewhat weaker.
Having given a speech
on Australian wines
I was invited to talk
on the subject of canines.
I am always prepared
to do the very best
so was very punctilious
in preparing the text.
Whereas in the wine lecture
I mentioned a monteith
I wondered what I’d say
on the topic of teeth.
Should I mention incisors
and the first bicuspids?
But what if in the audience
there were a load of kids?
Would they know the purpose
of teeth that are conical?
My instinct told me
they’d think of them as comical.
My careful preparation
was of no consequence
and my presentation
was met with utter silence.
The message was clear,
there were no ifs and buts,
what they wanted to hear
was the history of mutts.

© Luigi Pagano