Satin shines steadily
Caressed by its owners soft hands
Sliding out as ribbons spill off the sides
Each sewn sloppily

Still it binds
Nonetheless
It fetters with cotton fluff*
Torn as the top of the box

And those toes
All bunions, and blisters, and bruises
Battered
And beaten
They bow
With every movement they crack

But like drizzling downpours drown drops on a cheek*
It is masked
By the shank
Supporting little or nothing at all

Still we’re swaddled in silk
Engulfed in illusory glow
And when light hits it right
Satin steadily shines
And it just goes to show



*1 toe padding
*2 water in small amounts hardens a point shoe but too much water ruins it