In His Grandpa’s Shoes
For Jake Hunter Esposito
By Charles Fishman

The shoes are far too big,
but he half manages to walk
in them—shuffling and stumbling

like the greatgrandpapa he remembers.
I think the shoes are the right size
for him   but far too large for me:

how much easier it would be
to step out of them and pull on
a cozy pair of slippers, to fall back

in a plush chair candlelit and scented
with lavender. These shoes should stay
unlaced, deep in the dark Atlantis

of our hall closet, so this child may
discover the path imagination takes:
no slight-of-hand but the fancy footwork

of vision. In Grandpa’s shoes, he will
lift off from this hate-trodden planet,
astronaut of unhoped for grace.

.

Charles Fishman
Director - Distinguished Speakers Program
Farmingdale State University