The Shoes

Here is a link to the book on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Aluminum-Cowboys-Poems-Short-Stories/dp/B0G33PDHBJ/ref=sr

I like
my shoes; they are
the only pair
I have.
I've walked miles in
them.
They have
got me around for years.
My shoes are
falling apart.
They should have
quit on me a long
time ago.
Strangely enough,
people compliment
me on them.
They don't see
that the soles are
worn thin, or that they
smell like cat piss and
rotting flesh.
They don't see the
blood stains on
the canvas and the
piece of broken glass stuck
in the heel.
Nope,
they just say,
'Nice kicks;
they look good on you.'
I can't afford
another pair right now,
and even if I could,
I wouldn't spend
the money on them.
No, I like my
shoes, even with
all their imperfections.
They have seen
a thousand sunsets and
carried me away
from many heartbreaks.
My shoes have
run
walked
and sauntered through
snow
rain
and all kinds of s**t.
My shoes have
saved me and
betrayed me.
And they have
tasted every type
of booze known
to man.
When I'm dead and
gone
I hope someone
burns
my shoes and throws
the ashes in
that long lonesome
river, under the bridge,
where men
live and fight
and dream.

Author's Note

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvQ13w_ezYI
Here is a link to my YouTube channel, where I read from my recently published book, Aluminum Cowboys: Poems and Short Stories

Reviews

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

Wow I loved the descriptions and felt your shoes were a good pair to have roughed it so and still be wearable snd loved. I keep my shoes till holes. I don’t have a shoe or handbag fetish like a lot of females I own one pair of thongs as in shoes not pants lol one pair of walking shoes one pair slippers the others are sitting in my bathroom a pair of flat ballerina style and they are waiting yo be replaced with. $30 tender at target

[Thomas W Case]

Thank you so much, my friend.

[Carola]

hi thomas,
i read your other 5 poems ahead of this one too, but didn't comment. I found many of your poem lines very expressive, but didn't always 'get' the concept. sorry, my mind is not really geared up to understand free verse.
i did manage to grasp the concept of this poem, & found it interesting to read about the life of a foot covering, an item often unnoticed.
cheerio carola

[Thomas W Case]

Thanks. I appreciate it.

[Samuel Segun Toluwalase]

Lovely Poem. Lovely poem
I enjoyed reading this

[Thomas W Case]

Thank you. I appreciate it.

[Light and ashes]

Reminds me, of someone I know....
Interesting, write.

[Thomas W Case]

Thank you.

[Light and ashes]

You are a good writer...you are quite welcome.

[W. Barrett Munn]

Excellent extended metaphor, T-man.

[Thomas W Case]

Thanks, my friend.

[Lara]

I have shoes just like this. Wouldn't trade them for all the bridges 'cross the county!

A fine and fitting write, Thomas

[Thomas W Case]

Thanks, much appreciated.

[red93]

So interesting how you use the Shoes motif in this Piece Thomas to represent so much else in yr life. I get my shoes from Shoezone here in Bristol Centre - dead cheap, but when they reach the end of their useful lives, I bin them and buy another cheap pair 😁 Really Excellent ✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️

[Thomas W Case]

Thank you, my friend.

[John Sullivan]

They said the road leads just where it's led... what else is there to do but take another step? Cheers Tom, hope this finds you well.

[Thomas W Case]

I appreciate you. Thanks.

[John the Baptist]

Thomas, if your shoes are as versatile and capable as you say they are in this offering, you shouldn't even think of burning them. They should be Nobel Prize nominees at the least.

[Thomas W Case]

Or at least bronzed. Thanks, my friend.