Pink ballet shoes with satin ribbons
so pretty,
until you try them on
Blocks of wood,
tip-toe pain,
position your feet,
no not like that
awkward, clumsy, different
A line of perfect six-year olds,
professionally attired
give pitying looks
some with contempt
at my mother’s poor, makeshift,
home-made attempt
at a tutu
Embarrassment dawns unexpectedly
and I see the world in a different way
the view from my peers
registers in my reflection
in the wall length mirror
and I am ashamed
They don’t see what cost them little
was sacrificial to us
or how much love
had been poured into this day
and I in humiliation
forget
and tell her I don’t want to dance anymore
But she forgets about the mirror
and I see her sadness
and disappointment
and want to take it back
but it is too late
DANA MATON
Auckland, NZ
Are you a Budding Poet? Have your poem published in MiNDFOOD magazine here.