Ode To Crazy Socks Poem by Celina Alegria

We were told in English class to write an ode to an ordinary object that we love, so I wrote this one. =)

This sock
In the drawer
I once saw in a factory
In China.
I am positive
That you will never
Believe it,
But it dances,
The sock dances,
And dances,
As the bright colors are
Woven together
By minimum-wage children,
It dances
With moving color
Unconfined
By the cogs and hydraulics
Of dark grey machines.
I shudder
In my red plastic chair
As I imagine the sock dancing,
Escaping its humble origins
As lackluster white thread.
It snakes through the industry
The thread spinning,
The foot shimmying,
The top bopping,
Until it is on a barge to America,
And its dance is quieted for the moment.
In the barge,
The sock lies in wait,
Resting,
But not in peace,
Eagerly anticipating,
Wanting to slide over an American foot.
And then,
In many sock drawers,
Brightening the look of many feet,
Crazy Socks.
We see your designs
Penetrating High School Halls
Darting through busy malls
Hanging upon countless store walls
Crazy Socks…
We see your vivid colors
Matching any and every outfit.
We see the way you draw attention
By your wild designs!
We see your interesting impact
In unduly detailed landscapes
Fighting for your place
Your attention and smile
As everyone comments on your style
On the foot of the American
Gift from China or Taiwan,
The foot becomes a work of art
Whenever you are present;
Color is spread in motley
Or bright disposition
Transforming a mere foot
Into something worth walking on
Every look at a crazy sock
Is a glance at one’s
Own self-expression
The competition
For one’s place in this world.