Someone Else's Shoes Poem by Randy McClave

I was told to wear someone else's shoes
I did, but they did not fit,
Mine are high grained leather and I never got a bruise
Where theirs seemed to be used and hand knit.
Theirs were worn and very tattered
And they couldn't keep the weather or the elements out,
My feet were later aching and battered
From every step that I took I gave out a loud shout
I walked the same road and paths that I walked before
But, now there was pain with every step that I took,
Now someone else's shoes I wore
Now I felt every pebble, every rock that I once forsook.
Then I was told to carry their weight
While their shoes I was still wearing,
Everyone I was then told has a different destination and fate
And some fates are to be helpful and caring.
Every step that I took I now shedded a tear
More pain I felt the farther that I had walked,
Away from obstacles I did quickly steer
Now the shoes that I wore people laughed at as they talked.
When I took off the shoes my feet were all blistered
And those shoes were both now blood stained,
Then from my soul I heard thoughts and words whispered
Knowledge and understanding I now had gained.
I could not imagine the pain that my feet would receive
While wearing someone else's shoes and carrying their load,
What I once thought I now will never believe
That I can wear someone else's shoes down the same road.

Randy L. McClave