One Day Without Shoes - Part One

TOMS One Day Without Shoes

Seemed like an easy enough task. Spend one day without shoes, to represent the lifetime some go without in other countries. Surely, I can do this. I may own 100+ pairs of shoes, but I like being barefoot.

From the moment I swung my feet around to climb out of the bed, I knew this was going to be a long day! I have two dogs that commanded my attention for their morning outing. I usually throw on a pair of flip-flops to follow them outside. This morning, I followed barefoot. The cement was cool, but no huge problems. The pollen from the oak tree in my yard did stick to my feet. I also didn’t dare walk into the dew soaked grass to throw the ball to Maddux! He had to bring the ball to me on the slab where my feet were high and dry!

I finished getting dressed and started out the door. Standing fully dressed, coffee and keys in hand, I pulled the door to my house shut behind me and paused. It really felt odd, standing on the cold brick steps, dressed for work and no shoes on my feet. I actually starting thinking to myself, I forgot something… cell phone? Check. Keys? Check. Computer cord? Check. Turned the coffee pot off? Check. The lack of shoes on my feet really caused my brain to make me take a moment to think, “What did you forget?”

I crossed my driveway and loaded my things in the Jeep and climbed into the driver’s seat. Is driving my car barefoot even legal? Safe? As it was, I had to pull the seat up a bit to be able to push the clutch in! Apparently, I take for granted the extra bit of height my shoes provide!

As I pulled up to my office, I paused a moment. Could I really do this today? Go barefoot? I’m not one who usually gives a dang about what people think about me, but I don’t go around drawing attention to myself either. I am a generally conservative person! Yet here I am, at my office, dressed in Capri pants to be sure people can see I am barefoot. And it’s only 8 a.m. I wonder if I really am going to make it all day!

I gathered myself and got out of the Jeep. I crossed our paved parking lot (thankful it’s not shells!) paying attention to where I was stepping. Usually, I just sprint inside, talking on the phone or still singing that last song on the radio. Defiantly not paying attention to the little things on the cement! This morning I was made aware of a tiny nail that I picked up to save my feet and an unsuspecting tire.

Upon walking into my office, I was pleased to find my co-workers were ready and barefoot! Both of our office workers were barefoot, and had already hung up the information poster on our office door to inform customers of our mission! The graphics department, also, was barefoot and ready to go! I was very excited to see that they were accepting of the idea and understood it’s importance.

Being barefoot around my office was really no big deal. Often times, if my heels are hurting my tootsies, I kick them off and go barefoot for a bit. I mostly sit at my desk and use the computer all day. Our floors are carpeted and clean. It didn’t really seem like much of a sacrifice to be barefoot in here. Then came the biggest challenge of my day… the bathroom. I’m not really a big germ-a-phob, but the idea of using a bathroom shared by 20 other people, men and women, had me second guessing the barefoot thing. Gross, right? I contemplated getting two Wet Wipes and placing them under my feet as I trudged to answer nature’s call. Maybe taking some paper from the recycle box and lining the floor? There had to be a safe way! Then I thought about it. I have indoor plumbing to be concerned about using. A toilet less than 20 steps from my desk. What was I really going barefoot for, if not to better understand the hardships that come with it. I took a deep breath, and off to the bathroom I went.

As lunch time approached, my mom called to see if I wanted to meet her at our local plant nursery, Ganier’s, to help her pick out some plants for her yard. Needing to get tomato plants for my own garden, I agreed to meet her there. Back through our paved parking lot I went. Not so lucky when pulling into Ganier’s! Their parking lot is a fine mixture of rocks and mud. Slightly daunted, I cautiously climbed down and made my way inside. I had already warned my mother of my lack of footwear for the day, but the other customers defiantly missed the memo. I got quite a few odd stares, and one obvious statement of “You don’t have any shoes on.” Yes, thank you, I have realized that. The different surfaces proved to be fun for my little feet. The difference in temperature from the warm rough concrete outside to the cool smooth bricks inside was fun to experience.