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Experiment 3

Reminders on Footwear

page 7

Reminders on Footwear.

Five thousand pairs of shoes for refugees -
The fittest gift for those who wander
Trying to acclimatise.

They should be waterproofed with linseed oil
Or blood will do (remove all plasma;
Let the residue congeal.)

They can be reinforced with wrought-steel tips -
You know how children scuff the leather
Kicking everything to bits.

They should stand up to wear. You see the ruts
By roundabouts - how giddy children
Centrifugal, grind up dust.

They must resist all climates, should not crack.
And here it's mild enough in winter -
Frosty once or twice a week.

On candied lawns some schooltimes, what appears
An intermittent code of sunlight
Dodges concrete thoroughfares.

Late morning warmth abliterates this morse;
Its content cannot be deciphered
For better or for worse.
If worse, all gifts are late for refugees
Who flee from no specific centre,
Who feel no need of shoes.