Jamie Ravage stepped onto the dim stage and gripped the mic stand. He'd told himself it was just another crowd, but every crowd felt like the first.

“Evenin’, folks. Y’all ever notice bar stools are just chairs with commitment issues?” Silence. He scratched the back of his neck and laughed nervously. “Well, that one didn’t stick.”

A few weak chuckles followed. Encouraged, he launched into stories about farm life, barbed wire, and surviving bad decisions. Most jokes missed. A couple landed.

“Life’s like a screen door in a tornado,” he said with a grin. “You just hope it don’t hit ya.”

Not a triumph, but enough. Jamie smiled and kept going.