Shoes!!!!

On our way to shoe shop

There is a very distinct history to the development of shoes in our society.  In Toronto, the Bata Shoe Museum displays shoes from the time of creation until now. There, one can see the significance of shoes in the life of a people, anything from class distinction, to gender oppression, to fashion interests. You can tell a lot about a culture by their shoes! I remember visiting the museum with our children. I dragged them in as they complained, “Shoe Museum, mom? We don’t want to do this!” and, on the way out they were completely enthralled and grateful for the experience.

Personally, I like walking barefoot. I feel good walking directly on the earth, feeling the ground under my feet and reinforcing the natural curves of my arches. It gives me a feeling of strength and endurance. I used to love running barefoot on sandy beaches. I try to avoid shoes always. While in the cities, I wear sandals (in the summertime) or boots, any other time. Running shoes work at other times! Recently I borrowed a ‘fancy’ pair of shoes for a wedding that I attended. Thankfully, I had permission from the ‘lender’ to leave the shoes in Mexico where the wedding took place.

I’m not one to give in to the fashions of the time. When sneakers began to ‘diversify’ I avoided getting sucked in. I used the same shoes for running that I used for walking, or basketball, or baseball. I just made sure they were well made. I was never a “shoeaholic”. I know some people who collect shoes and need special closets to store the many different shoes that they buy.

Colouring and trying on new shoes...
That's Eric!

There is a lot that can be said about people’s shoes. In some of my workshops, I often do a strategy called “Shoe and Tell”. Each participant is asked to place one of his or her shoes in the middle of the circle. Taking turns then, each person shares a description of their shoe - where it came from, why they bought it, and when. Shoes tell a story., and, undoubtedly, everyone has a story to tell.

Many children in San Marcos walk around barefoot. They just don’t have the resources to purchase shoes. They walk on the dirt and rocky roads innocently traversing sharp stones and dangerous fragments of earth. The bottoms of their feet are calloused and hard. They seem comfortable absorbing the divine earth with their feet. I have never heard one child complain. And yet, not having shoes prevents many of them from going to school. So many of the people here believe that feeding children is necessary before they allow them to go to school. “How can we send children to school malnourished.” is a common way of thinking. I believe that going to school is equally as important as feeding our bodies… feeding our souls is critical. Feeding our brain is too. Organizing breakfast and lunch programmes in the schools is essential!

Fernando 'selling' shoes

I’ve made friends with some of the children in the community. As I walk on the road into the village of San Marcos, I call many children by name. I often here “Buenos dias, Amy” in response. The new school year began last week and most kids are in classes during the day. Still, though, there are many children I see in the streets. They don’t go to school. They don’t have shoes.

Learning to walk made easier!

On Tuesday I went with friends, Sandra and Fernando into San Pablo to purchase 20 pairs of beautiful new sneakers ($60.00 for all). We bought smaller sizes for toddlers just learning to walk. We bought slightly bigger sizes for younger children still playing on the roads and in the parks. The rest of the shoes are for school age children who will be going to school for the first time. With new shoes they can walk safely through the streets to get to class. It doesn’t sound like much, and, in the bigger picture it really isn’t much. Shoes are just the beginning. There is still so much embedded in the infrastructure that makes it really challenging to emphasize the importance of education.

Diego

I was surprised when I gave Diego his shoes. Diego is just going into grade one in the public school in Tzununa. There are no shoes with velcro straps in the stores in San Pablo when I went shopping.  I thought I would be spending a good part of the morning teaching the children to tie their laces. But with excited energy, Diego grabbed his new sneakers, and, placing them on his bare feet, he tied both laces. I’m convinced he didn’t learn that by tying shoes. He learned it by tying fishing netting, or roping necklaces for tourists, or finishing the knots of woven cloths of the garments that his mother creates. Nonetheless, Diego happily ran off to school with two beautifully tied sneakers! And a huge smile on his face!

Their shoes are made for walking…not up…not down….just to keep on going. Avoiding stagnation, trying to stay above the poverty line, malnutrition and ignorance can be helped with something as simple as a new pair of shoes.

Happy kids!