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February 3, 2014 Maria Mudd Ruth
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Inaction of Shoes

by Ron Padgett (and posted on The Writer's Almanac)

There are many things to be done today
and it's a lovely day to do them in

Each thing a joy to do
and a joy to have done

I can tell because of the calm I feel
when I think about doing them

I can almost hear them say to me
Thank you for doing us

And when evening comes
I'll remove my shoes and place them on the floor

And think how good they look
sitting?... standing?... there

Not doing anything

"Inaction of Shoes" by Ron Padgett, from Collected Poems. © Coffee House Press, 2013.

Tags The Writer's Alamanac, Ron Padgett
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Flying from Mountaineers Books this Spring—the story of the Pigeon Guillemot—the world’s most charismatic alcid. This non-fiction natural history will be on bookshelves and available from online retailers on April 7, 2026. Click a link below to pre-order a copy now from these purveyors:

Mountaineers Books (non-profit, indie publisher based in Seattle)

Browsers Books (Olympia’s indie bookstore)

Bookshop.org (support your local bookstore)

Barnes & Noble (in the book biz since 1971)

Amazon


A Sideways Look at Clouds from Mountaineers Books

A Sideways Look at Clouds from Mountaineers Books

Rare BirdORDER TODAY >>

Rare Bird: Pursuing the Mystery of the Marbled Murrelet

“Compelling…  engaging.” —Library Journal

“Rare insights into the trials and joys of scientific discovery.” —Publisher’s weekly

Learn more about Rare Bird...

Enjoy this song by Peter Horne, "Little Bird, Little Boat, Big Ocean.” Written about the Marbled Murrelet, but the lyrics work well for the Pigeon Guillemot, too.


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