EXPLORATION 1

Ode to Pablos Tennis Shoes

Gary Soto
They wait under Pablos bed,

He wants to be

Rain-beaten, sun-beaten,

Like his shoes,

A scuff of green

A little dirty

At their tips

From the road,

From when he fell

A little worn

In the school yard.

From racing to the drinking fountain

He fell leaping for a football

A hundred times in one day.

That sailed his way.

It takes water

But Pablo fell and got up,

To make him go,

Green on his shoes,

And his shoes to get him

With the football

There. He loves his shoes,

Out of reach.

Cloth like a sail,

Rubber like

Now its night.

A lifeboat on rough sea.

Pablo is in bed listening

Pablo is tired,

To his mother laughing

Sinking into the mattress.

to the Mexican novelas on TV.

His eyes sting from

His shoes, twin pets

Grass and long words in books.

That snuggle his toes,

He needs eight hours

Are under the bed.

Of sleep

He should have bathed,

To cool his shoes,

But he didnt.

The tongues hanging

(Dirt rolls from his palm,

Out, exhausted.

Blades of grass
Tumble from his hair.)

Scholastic Professional Books Opening a Door

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