Went to the nail salon.

They sloughed off layers of calluses on my feet.

Taking away the memories of all the places my feet had walked.

The plush carpets in hotels

The hot sandy beaches

The grasses of parks

Now my feet are smooth

And their memory is erased

They may not remember where to take me

Day to day

The paths will seem new to them

They may no longer feel the same in my favorite pair of shoes

As if they are not old partners the same streets I have walked day after

Day

But it also means that things that I took for granted

Are a surprising delight to my feet

The smooth wood floors of my apartment

The roughness of the living room rug

It’s like the first time I took a bare footed step

Each sensations registering with my feet as something amazing

Sometimes I wish I could slough off the layers of my own memories in the same way

Wake up and notice the sun falling on the pavement for the first time again

Taste a cool drink for the first time

So many things that I have calluses to in my mind

Could be wonderful to my smoothed out brain.