Socks

a collaboration with Cherrie Palmer and Einstein Noodle to visit Cherrie follow this link! https://www.writerscafe.org/Cherrie_Palmer

 

Socks

What is not…

is the familiar smell of coffee

waking me.

and the socks the dryer ate

(the balance is so strangely off).

like wearing grown up shoes when I was little.

 What is not…

is your frown when I say-

Guess what?  

I smile with the memory .. and

ghosts whisper like                 

old leather skins and 

fuzzy drunken tongues.

What I miss…

is your smile when I

held you;

Your breath when I breathed you.

Like the thinness of sea spray now. 

This only ..........................

is the hope that caresses me now.

thin mist and fog

What is fixed…

Is your tear when we thought forever;

and your fear of the dark

wearing black laces to keep socks pulled up ..............

A cold damp cloth is telling on your face

What is left…

Me holding tight the moment;

and facing the day off balance.

One sock on. One sock lost

and shoes that don't fit.

5/03/21 Cherrie Palmer with E.

Author's Note

Cherrie Palmer made a comment to me about socks and I told her she better use it in a poem or I would. She sent me a first draft and told me to do what I will ... I did and we edited back a forth a bit and came up with this one. Hope you enjoy reading and feeling.

Reviews

[DIVYA]

This brought to me the little and big things that we miss about a loved one, once they're gone. And all that's left is a remembering and that too seems like a dream. We clutch on to it so tightly, so hard for fear of losing what's left but that too sifts away like the proverbial sand. A very touching poem, dear E....a myriad of emotions conveyed and felt so deeply. The picture felt heart-rending to me for some reason. Aren't soulmates like a pair of socks. .? If lost, no other may be found with such a close and snug fit.

I hope you're well and having a great day. In my thoughts and prayers always.

[Einstein Noodle]

i find your review sensitive and brings up old wells of sorrow reading it .. thank you so much for taking time to walk in our shoes (and socks) ;) luv ya Divya! i am better than i deserve and not as good as i would wish ... i know you are doing great .. i can feel it! ;)
E.

[Pryde Foltz]

Heaven perhaps is domestication. This is a very deeply felt write for me E. It is those small moment, snap shots, that really can be the most powerful.

Extraordinary write:)

[Einstein Noodle]

wow! thank you Pryde .. i feel humbled my friend .. so happy it touched you in such a way! peace and love

[Melinda McQueen]

I like this piece as a whole.
The words seem t flow...
Flow as your thoughts.
Nicely done.

[Einstein Noodle]

super gratified you found the flow in them .. most likely it is Cherrie Palmer's influence ... she was a delight to work with and started the whole thing off after a discussion we had about something she said about socks .. i told her she should use it in a poem or i would and she sent back the structure and direction for me to hang me hat on. it was a real treat to work with her on this. thanks so much for stopping and letting me know what you think .. top o' the mahrnin' to ya!
E.

[Sherri Moshman Paganos]

Hi Einstein. First, a wonderful collaboration, speaking in one voice. Loved the "what is ..." tying the stanzas together. Sad -- the off balance of life when love is gone, just like a lone sock and shoes that don't fit. Great metaphor. Really enjoyed it.

[Einstein Noodle]

so happy to have your visit and comments .. it was an easy colab .. the "what is" was what started us off and is Cherrie's ;) top o' that mahrnin' to ya!
E.

[andrew mitchell]

A somewhat poignant write remembering what was shared now, cherished memories and those missing socks.

[Einstein Noodle]

thanks always for your visits sir .. much appreciated! we all have them don't we ..missing socks ;)
E.

[andrew mitchell]

I wrote a poem on missing socks about a socks anonymous meeting.

[Einstein Noodle]

ahahaha it's a conspiracy i tell ya!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Incredibly woven as one voice born of two.

[Einstein Noodle]

thank you! I found it very easy to work with Cherrie .. it was her "nugget" that started the whole thing off.
E.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

matching memories lose a sock, and the shoes don't fit right anymore when we are suddenly alone and miss all those things we didn't know we would so much when they were gone.
we just go around the house with that one sock on, searching for the "other!"

[Einstein Noodle]

aint it just the truth sir! thanks for taking time, jacob! you feel us and that means a lot!! peace and luv sir!
E.

[Vertigo Cat1111]

I loved the sad thoughtfulness of this. And the metaphors are brilliant too. A great idea and a great collaboration! The execution was grand!

[Einstein Noodle]

super encouraging review Ms. Cola! thank you ever so much! a very gratifying experience working with Cherrie Palmer ... tho edited back and forth .. it was such a smooth experience .. wasn't forced in any way ... pretty cool for me anyway! glad you enjoyed .. thanks again so much for your kind and encouraging review.
E.

[Fran Marie]

a great collaboration
you two. albeit sad..

life can be so unbalanced
at certain times especially
when a loved one passes

the little things they managed
to do for us in an orderly
fashion goes haywire ..
life gets tangled and off track
those lost socks tell us it
is so...

[Einstein Noodle]

thank you Fran .. you are always a sensitive reviewer .. sad and melancholy for sure ;) all of Nature screams for balance doesn't it!? ;) luv and peace and joy Fran Marie!!
E.

[Kathleen]

E....sad poem....so thoughtful....I imagined the unbalance of life when life is not as we predicted....I could imagine the coffee smell...You and Cherrie did nice work together on this one. I loved it......k

[Einstein Noodle]

thank you Kathleen ... appreciate you support and opinion for sure ... love peace and joy sister! :)
E.

[Einstein Noodle]

ps. a big hearty welcome to the Cafe' .. i will try not to miss your first post. :)))

[olla]

you have no idea how this collaboration struck me this morning.. and I wish I could tell you.. amazing what we can accomplish when we work heart to heart..

[Einstein Noodle]

i agree olla! your "without words" says volumes says i! tho we edited and discussed more than several times .. this one, for me, was one of the smoothest collaborations I have even been part of. Cherrie is so easy to work with .. when engaged in, one has to let go ego .. and really listen to the partner's voice .. sometimes not easy to do but the "heart to heart" is such a healthy endeavor and worth every bit of effort, if not more .. I appreciate you olla .. thanks so much for taking time

[olla]

my pleasure Mr. Noodle.. it was a real treat and you are so right about what it takes to do one this well.. we really do have to open our fortress a bit.. and.. I appreciate you as well..

[Einstein Noodle]