Friday, May 28, 2010

Princess Shoes

She felt like a princess that night,
Cinderella, dressed in airy white,
fitting in, for once, with festive fools,
in borrowed jewels that sparkled
like the sapphires of her eyes.

She thought she could have danced the evening long
In flawless shoes that seemed, at first,
to fit her slender feet,
daintily displaying tiny toes.
Unpolished, but blessed with a child-like grace
she kept up with society's circling pace,
the joy of dancing filling all her thoughts.

Now, surfeited with sambas and foxtrots,
her feet feel flat,
confined.

Stepping out for air,
she finds her shoes stuck fast
in someone's snare.
She freezes, faced with selecting her fate--
If a prince should find and save her, could she stay?
Become a princess, richly shod each day?

Though fatigued, her feet don't hesitate,
swiftly slipping out to homeward flee,
to heal her heels,
set toes and arches free...
and retrace shadows of the swirling steps
on the safe, familiar floor.

18 comments:

  1. I love your whimsical and clever Magpie! Cinderella-like in its magic.

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  2. I loved this -- and I love your header! Well done on both counts.

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  3. A clever revisit tothe favorite fable! Oh, yes. I like this!

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  4. Even without the direct Cinderella reference, it's very much Cinderella. Nice.

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  5. Love "heal her heels"...your poem felt "swirling" as a whole.

    -Dina

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  6. What a beautiful poem, you certainly are talented.

    It does "swirl" when you read it,just like a dance.

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  7. Retelling Cinderella with success takes talent. way to go!

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  8. I like the idea of purposefulness in her decision.
    Your retelling gives her strength of character :)

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  9. T---That was wonderful! My sis said you were linked to this website. It's fun to see what everyone does with the picture! Hope all is well.
    Corrina :o)

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  10. ah, so fun to dance, yet so fun to sit and stretch the toes when done...smiles. a magical magpie...

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  11. She made the right choice..go home ,girl! Princes are a dime a dozen..
    Very good!

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  12. A great Cinderella-ish story...only with a different kind of freedom for this girl!

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  13. Really enjoy the light rhythm to enhance the fantasiful mood.

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  14. Loved the poetic images, but so glad you brought attention to the 'familiar floor' (unpolished boards) while we were all concentrating on the shoes!

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  15. ~T~,
    From the dream to reality like a shakespearean work or a song: "From a Jack to a King, from loniness to a wedding ring."
    Dreams are necessary to goal setting but we need reality to achieve them.
    Well done Magpie.
    rel

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