Thursday, November 16, 2006

Freelance poetry

here are a few things I have written recently:

First, a piece honoring my sandals, which, this summer, saw me safely through Chicago, England, a war in Lebanon, Jordon, and back to England again, where they became too much of a nuisance. It got to the point where it felt like there was more foot support in walking barefoot than in wearing those, so I had to ditch them. I wanted to wear them until they broke, but these were not going to break. Sure, they had holes in the soles and I would stub my big toe all the time because of how worn they were in that place, but that is essentially why I must honor them.

An Ode to Sandals:

My pair of flip-flops,
They died today.
I just walked by
And threw them away.
It was a difficult
Thing for me to do.
(Getting rid of
my best pair of shoes).
I wept very much
and was obviously grieved.
I miss them already;
There is no relief.
"So what?" you say.
"Who cares?" I hear.
My friend, you would care
If you could see my tears.
So, I decided I might
Commemorate on a whim
The sandals that took me everywhere,
And hence, I shall describe them:
Their hue consists mostly of khaki.
Every time I bring them home,
My mother has called them tacky.
They are quite tattered
around the edge of the sole.
Throughout there are impressions
In the shapes of bowls.
And let's not forget
The hole in the left heel.
It's the size of a half-dollar.
Every rock I step on I feel.
Finally, things became kaput.
And I ended up barefoot.

(written in the first couple of days of august-06, with some slight alterations just now.)



and here is another one, best described as a personal challenge molded after the sermon on the mount:


Hunger and Thirst

If you don't intend
To preach to the poor,
If the only heart
You want healed is yours,
If you are not willing
To let the captives go free,
If you are refusing
To let the blind see,
If you don't intend
On raising the dead,
Then don't even bother
To get out of bed.



yep, it is kind of simple, but it has some inspirational value.

that's enough for this entry; more on my summer and other thoughts later.