QUESTION:
At this moment in time, which of your own poems is your personal favorite and why?
***
What the Moon Says About My Shoes
You don’t have a choice.
Not with those feet–proud and demanding
at the arch, flat and hopeless
behind the toes–they hate bondage.
I see you walk on polished concrete,
cinders, lake stones, oak boards
that moan, especially at 3:00 a.m.
You will never wear glass pumps,
but remember my opal sandals
walk everywhere and trouble the twin hearts
of right and left. I leave no footprint
but a cool spot small as a nickel.
Your mean little shoes, rigid and dead,
shoes that resist lining up at night–
I’m watching them for you.
***
Dawn:
Sometimes I need to write a poem that doesn’t take place in this world we witness every day, a world more surrealistic and magical. I like the combination of moon magic and tired feet. I also loved the challenge of writing a poem on a topic I’ve never seen before. This poem always makes me smile.
Bio:
Dawn McDuffie moved to Detroit in 1968 and has drawn on the city for inspiration ever since. She has published poems in Pearl, Feminist Studies, CT Review, and Third Wednesday. Two of her chapbooks, Carmina Detroit, and Flag Day In Detroit, were published by Adastra Press. A third chapbook, Bulky Pickup Day, was published by Finishing Line Press in 2011. Her latest book is Happenstance and Miracles, published by Finishing Lin Press, 2018.
