The leather sole
flaps like an open wound
water seeps in, cold
abuses the exposed fles
making the walk
uncomfortable
The padded interior
has worn now
thin and hard
gnawing at one's sanity
with every step
chaffing
Sometimes the emptiness
seems repairable
temporary patches try to restore the tears
but wear and fall apart
deficient
tattered laces snag
on everything like a noose
eyelets fall out and the shoe tears more
and sits stale from mildew
dejected
Unbearable emptiness
resonates
like the soggy echo
of a step taken in a
broken shoe.
