A Letter to My Sperry's: Inspired by Kobe Bryant
[As the legendary career of Kobe Bryant comes to a close, it was only necessary to re-write the Mamba's farewell letter (here)... not to basketball, but to a post-graduate fraternity man's best friend.]
Dear Sperry’s,
From the moment
I took off my socks
My heels embracing leather
New blisters, pesky rocks
No matter the weather
I knew one thing was real:
I fell in love with you.
A love so deep I gave you my all
From beer spills and mud holes
Bless your thick rubber sole
As an eighteen year old kid
With his top-sider cherry
I never saw the end of the tunnel
I saw strange leather laces
And the tops of my feet, getting too much sun
And so I walked
I walked miles upon miles
Through every terrain with you
You asked for a break
And would try to separate
But I found you, in the morn
I fought through those pesky rocks
Not because pain called me
But because you were my only pair
I experienced everything with YOU
Because that’s what you do
When footwear makes you feel as
Alive as you made me feel
You gave a freshman in college his boat shoe dream
And I’ll always love you for it
But I can’t wear you obsessively any longer
College was all I had to give
My heels can take the adjustments
My wallet can now handle the bill
But the gaping hole in your toe means it’s time to say goodbye.
And that’s OK.
I’m ready to let you go
I want you to know now
So we can both savor our last moments together
The good smells and the bad
We’ve given eachother
All the miles and stains we had
And we both know, no matter what I buy next
You’ll always be the reason
I’m now loafer obsessed
The lone cup in the middle
The redemption shot
White ball in my hand
5…4…3…2…1
Love you always,
Jakob
