Chartreuse Flip Flops

They where out greeting eternity

while we stayed in to grieve.

One smiling photo after another

but I kept looking

at the chartreuse flip flops,

wondering

do they smell,

wondering
if one could ever

throw them away.

Footprints sat light

on the slender foam,

dirt and sweat

forming the outlines

of a soul.

and I heard their flip flop sound

coming across the wide tile floors.

flip flops

running to say hi mom,

to get the keys to the car,

breathless

and giggling.

And I have trouble believing

it won't be so.

And so they sit,

chartreuse flip flops,

working like kryptonite

on my soul, sucking

the strength from my beliefs.