Shoes

A Pause at the Doorway

Would you rather not slip?

The dad walked out of the entranceway of his home and slipped on his son's sandals.

Damn him, he muttered underneath his breath. Why is he so careless? Wouldn't it be nice if he found a new place to live?

And then he paused.

Thought of the war. The letters from his older brother from the desert. The officer who delivered a letter in person to his mom notifying her of his brother's death.

Friendly fire, it read.

He thought about his mom putting his brother's favorite socks and shoes in a box in the closet that he inherited from his mom after she passed.

He thought about how he would just do about anything in this world to slip over his brother's shoes, his mom's shoes, his dad's shoes.

He took a breath, neatly placed his son's sandals against the wall.

What a journey they had just taken him on.

A story by Pemba Umoja