“Some Words for the Week”

I got a new pair of work boots

because in my old pair

by the end of the day

my toe would be numb

and my heels aching

and by the end of the first day

with my new boots

they are scuffed as the old pair

but when I unlace them

on the bench before the door

there is no pain

nor absence of feeling

and I smile in my socks

and despite

the evil men in power

the burning forests

the children’s bodies

strewn in useless wars

despite the rate of inflation

making living even harder

there are still my feet

and today they are not sore

and I walk to the bedroom

where you lie in a robe

and you kiss me

and I close my eyes

and the world is gone

and all that’s left is warmth.

Alexander Shalom Joseph is a writer from Gilpin County. He has two published books and one more forthcoming in the Fall of 2022. For more information and to subscribe to Alexander’s Newsletter go to alexandershalomjoseph.com