Patricia Carragon – i’ve put on my mother’s shoes

Patricia Carragon

i’ve put on my mother’s shoes

& walked on city streets
crossed asphalt & cobblestone gutters
climbed various staircases
to subways schools jobs
apartments

sometimes took elevators
when available

i felt the leather tighten
heard soles sigh

pain rose up vascular roadways—
a headache signaled to action

her past
a telepathic rerun—
i already knew how it would end

emotions created her whorls & lines
& no two fingerprints were alike

unanswered questions
stepped on anger & grief —
wondered why I still shrink
in my own shoes

Patricia Carragon is the author of several books of poetry and fiction. Her latest poetry books from Poets Wear Prada are Meowku and The Cupcake Chronicles, and Innocence from Finishing Line Press Her debut novel, Angel Fire, is from Alien Buddha Press. Patricia hosts the Brownstone Poets reading in Brooklyn and publishes an associated anthology annually. She is also an executive editor for Home Planet News Online. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.