Saturday, September 17, 2005
Shoes
Tonight I was watching two ballgames, switching between the Mississippi State-Tulane game and the Tennessee-Florida one. That wasn't enough multitasking for me so I decided to organize my shoes.
I was astounded to find that I own 29 pairs of shoes, plus a pair of house shoes and a pair of flip-flops.
When I was a child, I only had one pair of shoes at a time. Usually we bought shoes in the fall before school started back after cotton picking. We went to Henderson to Stansell-Vernon. It was an important occasion and it made me feel important myself. I usually bought some kind of oxfords or sneakers. I coveted a pair of high-top sneakers but I don't think I ever got any. Fit was crucial because if they hurt, they just had to hurt. That one pair of shoes was it. But usually they were plenty big because they were bought that way with one finger length at the toe to grow into.
When the new shoes were bought, I always wanted to wear them immediately. The old, worn shoes were put in the new shoebox and then wrapped with paper and tape. There were no sacks at Stansell-Vernon.
Now I look at these rows of shoes and see some patterns. More than one are high heeled boots or elastic strapped sandals or are slides. I remember where I got them. Sonja gave me the Easy Spirits several years ago; Julia gave me a pair of slides two weeks ago. I bought two pair at my cousin Eva Mae's store.
One pair of boots has thick soles, fake fur lining, and is guaranteed to be warm to 10 degrees. I call them my Ole Miss Game Boots. The pink flip-flops I wore in Hawaii with Beth. The brown boots with the unusual heels I bought when I wanted something different. I announced that at Mother's Sunday table and no one believed me, but, when I put my foot up, Desiree said "Aunt Mary!!!!" One pair of dress shoes still has dirt on the heels from Friendship Cemetery.
I decide to cull my collection and I discard 4 pairs, all shabby.
I wish I had known I would someday have 29 pairs of shoes.
Tonight I was watching two ballgames, switching between the Mississippi State-Tulane game and the Tennessee-Florida one. That wasn't enough multitasking for me so I decided to organize my shoes.
I was astounded to find that I own 29 pairs of shoes, plus a pair of house shoes and a pair of flip-flops.
When I was a child, I only had one pair of shoes at a time. Usually we bought shoes in the fall before school started back after cotton picking. We went to Henderson to Stansell-Vernon. It was an important occasion and it made me feel important myself. I usually bought some kind of oxfords or sneakers. I coveted a pair of high-top sneakers but I don't think I ever got any. Fit was crucial because if they hurt, they just had to hurt. That one pair of shoes was it. But usually they were plenty big because they were bought that way with one finger length at the toe to grow into.
When the new shoes were bought, I always wanted to wear them immediately. The old, worn shoes were put in the new shoebox and then wrapped with paper and tape. There were no sacks at Stansell-Vernon.
Now I look at these rows of shoes and see some patterns. More than one are high heeled boots or elastic strapped sandals or are slides. I remember where I got them. Sonja gave me the Easy Spirits several years ago; Julia gave me a pair of slides two weeks ago. I bought two pair at my cousin Eva Mae's store.
One pair of boots has thick soles, fake fur lining, and is guaranteed to be warm to 10 degrees. I call them my Ole Miss Game Boots. The pink flip-flops I wore in Hawaii with Beth. The brown boots with the unusual heels I bought when I wanted something different. I announced that at Mother's Sunday table and no one believed me, but, when I put my foot up, Desiree said "Aunt Mary!!!!" One pair of dress shoes still has dirt on the heels from Friendship Cemetery.
I decide to cull my collection and I discard 4 pairs, all shabby.
I wish I had known I would someday have 29 pairs of shoes.
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