The Girl In The Chuck Taylor All-Stars Poem by Kurt Philip Behm

Her hair blown free,
with eyes ablaze

She walked toward me,
through morning haze

Her steps unmeasured,
her cutoffs tight

Eyes palest blue,
the lightest light

Would I speak first,
would she respond

In ten more seconds,
her image gone

Our shoulders brush,
she passes by

My arm goes numb,
my heart on fire

I had no choice,
I'd lost control

My breathing stopped,
I'd play the fool

And looking back,
all fear defied

An all-star waited,
—her ‘Chucks' untied

(Villanova Pennsylvania: April,2017)