Every time that he clangs
against a neighbor, he sings,
he jingles, almost as if
he is rejoicing despite
his shining, cold, angry, tough
exterior. Whether I
want him to or not, he goes
ahead and announces my
comings and leavings. A name
is etched deeply into his
very own skin (if you could
even call it such). The name
is not his to claim, it shows
that there are a million
of his kind. At one time he
looked just like everyone
else, until a man with a
calloused touch picked him up
out of a faceless tin sea,
and carved him a jagged smile.
Now he spends his days hanging
on a silver loop with new
friends. He delights in the way
that his deep ridges and grooves
cast shadows in the sunlight,
sighs happily when he feels
his cold, stiff smile slide almost
effortlessly between the
gears of a rusted farmhouse
doorknob the very first time.
Who else can say that his grin
alone can open home's doors?