shoes

i have been without
shoes before. hard to
believe as i stare at
the thirty odd pair
strewn about the closet
floors, beneath the bed
or on the stairs, or
lined up on shelves
collecting dust.
there were days though
that i couldn't attend
class because i had
no shoes to wear,
and those days don't seem
that long ago, and when
i did have shoes, eventually
they had holes in the soles.
which would lead to holes
in the socks by day's end.
i'm making sure now though,
by purchase after purchase
of shiny black and brown
shoes, that it will never
happen again.