“Some Words for the Week”

There’s a sneaker

long abandoned

in the roadside dirt

on the neighborhood loop

where my parents house is

and it will outlive us all

it’s made of plastic

and other synthetics

that will effectively

never break down

it’s been there since

I was in high school

and today it looks the same

as it’s ever looked

faintly dusty but not worn out

almost tempting passersby

to try it on

or find the other in the pair

clean it with a toothbrush

wear it around town

a found pair of new shoes

I see it when my mom and I

walk her dog

as we did with the dog before

this mass of laces and rubber

already lasting longer

than one generation of our pets

and it will lie there still

in the snow and grass

depending on the weather

throughout the rest of my life

and my mothers life too

when she cannot walk

around the block anymore

when neither can I

when the world is nowhere near

what it was when I was born

and young in it

when all the dogs are long gone

when I stumble confused

and hunched over

and eventually walk no more

the sneaker will remain

immortal in the white dust

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