In Their Shoes (C) 2-2-20 Poem by Zahir Kijani

Size eleven and a half on the left
And slightly a size 12 on the right…
But I never thought I’d fit into a six again
I grew the foot of a woman, and walked in her shoe
Even as a youngster I never felt shoes like these though,
Very narrow and small,
Maybe it was because I’ve once fit into the shoe of a man
I couldn’t believe how uncomfortable it was
How it felt, I almost cried from the way my toes were bunched,
High heels too, so I couldn’t run, couldn’t excel my speed
I could only go a slower than normal pace
The way my heels treated me, what it did to me
They were supposed to make me feel beautiful,
But instead they broke and twisted my ankle,
I can just barely walk on my own,
But I don’t think I’m ready for any new shoes
They hurt me once, why buy new ones that’ll only do the same thing
The bandages tried to help my foot recuperate
But they weren’t enough; I needed to be able to walk outside,
As much as they hurt I contemplate on wearing them again,
Maybe if I try and paste them together again,
They’ll work better and last longer than last time
I used to wonder why women complained about their shoes,
But that’s only until I walked in them myself.