All I Have is This One Pair

All I have is this one pair

That when I wear it brings me nothing but despair

They all judge

And they mock the way I walk

Wobbling, stumbling in these shoes

Little do they know I didn’t actually choose

To walk… 2km before school to fetch water for the tank

To walk… 3km to go to school

To walk… 1km to fetch sister at school

To walk… 5km to go to work in the farm fields

To walk… 2km back home to prepare for the next day

So before you judge me

According to the state of my shoes

Or the way I stumble as I walk

I beg you, I beg you please

At least walk a kilometer in my shoes

‘Cause all I have is this one pair

Thimna, 15