Who knew that one could get so excited about new shoes! But I have been thinking quite a bit about my shoes. You can see in the slideshow how worn out my hiking boots were. I still can't bring myself to throw them away. But I went to my favorite shoe store today (Stout's) and bought three pairs of shoes. I decided my way of coping with the economic crisis and unstable stock market was to invest in shoes. Stout's is a very old store with a live parrot that greets you with a big "Hello" as you enter the door. Old cables overhead serve to move wire baskets from the ground floor to the office just as a store in Piqua, Ohio used to do where my Grandma Hart worked. The store is just such a quality store. It sells Smartwool socks as well. You just feel good being in there. Well, anyway, enjoy my excitement over my new shoes. The clerk asked me if I was doing anything exciting this weekend? I answered, "Buying shoes!"
"Pairs of Shoes" by Nguyen Quyen (Vietnamese)
My future lives come to me in dreams
Come silently with torn soles.
I am like a skilled shoemaker
Greeting the wandering breath of these feet.
These dreams-my other selves
Sprawl out to sleep like a litter of puppies,
Pinches of ashy fur standing up in tufts
Their young hair like hens fluffed feathers
They lie on their stomachs, pressing against my shadow.
Pairs of shoes from yesterday will come tomorrow
Am I their native land, or a land foreign to them?
Their house, or an inn?
Which road guided them to me?
Tonight I decide to open myself to these dreams,
As anxious for their arrival as a child yearning for milk.
Perhaps fireflies will draw them in a different direction
And perhaps the shoes are no longer ripped.
I feel as empty as a new-born creature.
I spread out like a homeless evening
To meet these footprints turning toward me.
No comments:
Post a Comment