DANCE SHOES Abandoned dance shoesIn the middle of the polished oak floor, tiredGolden fabric tops wrinkled and thread-bareFrom months of stepping, sliding and gliding,From moving until rhythms and routinesWere not-quite-perfect. Soft suede soles caked in grit scrapedFrom the floor with each pressed slide:Suede embedded in suede,Residue of other abused shoes.Suede worn thinFrom multiple wire-brush strokes. Abandoned dance shoesStrewn in the middle of the dance floorAlone, wet from sweat and limp from useWhile the bare feet thatRecently occupied themPad away in search of a pair of street shoes