[Editor’s note: If only this had been written by John Bunyan . . .]
In the Foot Care Aisle
The foot care aisle at Walgreen’s maketh glad
The footsore souls who come to find relief—
Support for fallen arches, gel-filled pads
To cushion every podiatric grief.
My feet are sound and healthy, fungus-free,
But in the foot care aisle they ache to ache.
They itch to itch and burn so they might be
Soothed and eased and salved for comfort’s sake.
I contemplate my future and I smile.
Corns may mar my toes, a plantar’s wart my sole.
What then? I’ll come back to the foot care aisle.
I’ll manage with the help of Dr. Scholl.
Such pains are vague and far from where I stand,
But remedies are real and close at hand.
Jonathan Rogers is the author of The Terrible Speed of Mercy, one of the finest biographies of Flannery O’Connor we've ever read. His other books include the Wilderking Trilogy–The Bark of the Bog Owl, The Secret of the Swamp King, and The Way of the Wilderking–as well as The World According to Narnia and a biography of Saint Patrick. He has spent most of his adult life in Nashville, Tennessee, where he and his wife Lou Alice are raising a houseful of robustious children.
4 Comments
Jody Lee Collins
Anything can be made into a poem. Thanks for the smile.
Emily
Just had foot surgery, so I appreciate this very much. 🙂
CyndaP
I just want to know how long Dr. Rogers labored over this ode.
Haylie Allcott
This just… I can’t even… It’s awesome.
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