Two battered shoes sit in the hall
Bereft after a year at school
The right one sighs, the left one slumps
Comparing scuffs and scrapes and bumps
A year of battles, playground pacts
A year of daydreams, whispered chats
A year of friends, a year of foes
A year squeezed round ten growing toes
A year of plodding to the gates
A zig-zag path – never straight
A year beneath a school-room chair
While I’ve been here, and you’ve been there.
Today I passed them in the hall
Those battered shoes you wear to school
I stopped a minute on the way
And thought I heard the left one say:
We’re off to Malta for some sun
It’s been a blast – super fun
The truth is though, we’re old and tired
We’ve done our bit – now we’ve retired
Remember us, when next year beckons
Take a moment, pause a second
To think back on another year
While you’ve been there, and we’ve been here.
© Katie Gregory/There We Go 2018
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