The Power of a Smile
February 4th, 2007 by 
dani
My basement apartment
looks out onto the sidewalk
at street level.
I watch as shoes parade in front of a
fragile and solitary daisy,
leaving behind only echoes
like a metronome.
Shiny black dress shoes glint and scissor
through the air, below hovering
pinstriped suits, perfectly pressed.
Red high-heels delicately navigate,
avoiding the holes in the grates.
Colorful sneakers peek their noses out
from under too-long jeans.
Beat-up oxfords amble and loiter.
Solid boots. Unmemorable mocassins.
Even dogs’ paws and claws
click against the pavement
into the gutter
And more…
But only one little pair
of pink patent leathers
notices me as she leans down
to smell the daisy.
She makes me, barefoot,
exist with her smile.
The flower still grows,
undaunted,
in a crack in the cement.
Posted in Poetry | 
10 Comments »
April 15th, 2007 at 5:23 am
Hi!
The carnival is up at Knocking From Inside! Come check it out.
June 7th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
This is wonderful. I love seeing things from a different perspective!
June 7th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
I love the perspective from the eye of the daisy. Magical. Sweet.
June 7th, 2007 at 10:59 pm
Lovely poem – reminds me of a basement apartment I had briefly in London. I especially like your last stanza…the pink patent leather shoes… and the idea that a flower can shatter stone (I wrote a poem about this theme once).
June 8th, 2007 at 12:10 am
I loved this- it was just so sweet! It’s all about perspectives sometimes…
June 8th, 2007 at 1:04 am
I think it’s great how clear you are on the subject: it’s the shoes that smile! Lovely perspective.
June 8th, 2007 at 6:32 am
This really made me smile! There is something so fun about the image of being at shoe level, and drawing character traits out of what is walking by.
The basement apartment has an interesting vantage point, not to be discounted…
June 8th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
I love poems about shoes, and this was great! Each pair clearly characterized a different personality. Well done.
June 11th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
I love the premise for the poem and the pace of its imagery, like the scissoring legs walking by until one lovely face appears to match the daisy and your own bare feet become real.
June 12th, 2007 at 3:10 am
Written from such a fine perspective. I love this poem!!