Poem: Goofy Socks

[shiori_makiba]

Poem: Goofy Socks

by shiori_makiba

Word Count: 523 words in 84 lines

Part of the 'Ohana universe but doesn't just involve the polyfamily.

This poem was inspired by a prompt from dialecticdreamer for Thank Muse Its Friday February 2016 session.

“Goofy Socks”

The area known as the Garden

was a community.

A real community,

not just a collection of strangers

who just happened to live

in the same block.

They wanted a place that was safe for them.

A place that embraced their differences

instead of using it to tear them to shreds.

The people other communities threw away

for being gay, trans, poly, or whatever other excuse they picked,

would be given refuge.

One of the ways the Gardens

fostered good relationships in their community

was through activities.

One such activity was the Home Skills Club.

It was a chance to do crafts, cooking lessons, and more.

Anything that helped people learn to take care of themselves

and their homes.

Meetings were held in the Gardens Community Center.

Supplies were donated by fellow members.

The food was potluck.

Lakeisha, Nat, Sammy, Pedro, and Martin

were regular attendees along their neighbors

George and the Ryan-Smiths.

Lakeisha and Martin gravitated toward the fiber crafts section

alongside Beatrice Smith of the Ryan-Smiths.

Pedro joined Margaret Ryan in wood-working.

Sammy alternated between fiber crafts

and the cooking station with Nat and their neighbor George.

Today many at the Center were working

on a very special project.

George's little girl Jaime

was turning five this year.

And George wanted to do

something special for her birthday.

He always tried to make

her birthdays special.

But she was starting school

this year so he wanted to do

something new and different.

Which was why he was sitting

in the fiber craft section,

unfamiliar implements in hand.

And trying not to panic.

“Relax,” Sammy said.

“Knitting isn't nearly as hard as you are making it out to be.”

“But what if I mess it up?”

“That's the beauty of knitting. You can just unravel your mistakes.”

“But-”

“We are making goofy socks. You can't mess up goofy socks.”

Sammy might be blunt

to the point of rude

but thon was a patient teacher.

George let himself relax and

slide out of the process of knitting a sock

and into the sensations.

The soft brush of the yarn against his fingers.

Funny, he had always thought of yarn

as something scratchy but this was soft.

And colorful. He had surprised by just

how many colors there was to chose from.

He picked the rainbow one since

Jaime was between favorite colors

at the moment.

The click-clack of the knitting needles interspersed

with the soft murmur of conversation.

Or singing as Lakeisha liked to sing

while she worked.

Martin hummed along with her.

Sammy said he had a good voice

but was shy about singing in public.

Sometimes they talked Pedro into

bringing his guitar and singing too.

George didn't understand or speak Spanish

very well but he liked the songs anyway.

George smiled to himself.

Happy and making socks out of yarn for his daughter

while listening to Lakeisha and Pedro sing

the same song in alternating voices,

one in French, the other in Spanish.

The results were a little unusual

but there was nothing wrong with that.

After all, you can't mess up goofy socks.

Comments

[book_worm5.livejournal.com]

Aww, yay! Good for George. This make me want to learn socks, and I also like that all the other craft options are available.

I feel like the third verse doesn't need "to" at the end - it can just say "given refuge". It may still work the way you have it, but it feels like slightly awkward phrasing/grammar to me.

Thanks for Feedback

[shiori_makiba]

I'm glad you liked it. And I feel its always good to encourage crafting.

Corrected the third verse - rereading it, it was a little awkward with that "to" at the end.