I bought them from a department store for a few dollars four years ago, not the coolest or the most expensive but they did the job.
They’ve flipped through the sand playfully and rested on tiles prayerfully with Bali’s beautiful people
They made an accidental appearance at Wimbledon, and may have suffered a dollop of warm cream from my strawberries.
A European summer was a fitting environment for these fine friends and not to be outdown by more practical measures
They tasted the dust of Rome’s ancient paths
Cooled in the light blue waters of Venician canals
Stood beneath David’s marble features in Florence, dashing through the piazzas.
Not to be outdown by time and distance, they found their place in India’s complex culturesShopping for sarees on Commercial St, Bangalore
A dash of tea near a St Thomas church on a steamy afternoon
The sands of Chennai clinging and the blood of the martyr as close as could be
And then there are the wonders of our broad landCarried along the in the far north during a Cape Tribulation stroll
The sounds of Italy and the smell of garlic down Leichhardt streets
windmill on a Brisbane hill looked down on my friends
The trams of Melbourne could not shake us apart
And many other places
But in the end, after taking eveything I could throw at them
Or even when I threw them at anything, many times
They have been undone by nothing more
Than the little cuts and grinds of wear and tear
And though my trust remains strong
My fellow travellers are approaching their last journey
And will abide as holy relics