Reasons I Retired and What's Happening Now
Reason #1: Comfy shoes
My shoes are an extension of myself,
Witnesses to the paths I've trodden,
They bear the weight of countless stories,
As I wander through life's forgotten alleys.
Charles Simic, “My Shoes”
Soon, I know, I will have to give up my beloved flipflops for shoes that cover my toes. I’m not really looking forward to it. Flip flops are just SO easy to slide into and slide out of, to sit with my legs crossed and tangle a flip flop on my toes. But, alas, the cooler weather brings with it many changes, including footwear. At least, as I noted in my Number One reason for retiring, I’ll get to wear my slippers all day if I choose!
Reason One.
Comfy slippers. While I do wear mostly Skeechers to school, nothing beats these wonderful slippers I bought myself at Christmas. Who wouldn’t rather wear these all day?
Aren’t slippers wonderful? Specifically, “slippers” are what are called “light footwear” and are intended to be worn in the home since they lack the sturdiness of outside shoes.
But thanks to movies and fairytales, don’t all slippers seem to be imbued with magic? Remember Dorothy’s ruby slippers that led her down the Yellow Brick Road towards the Emerald City? There’s quite a rich story involving the shoes used in MGM’s blockbuster musical, The Wizard of Oz, which even involved the FBI.
Another famous example of “magic slippers” are the glass ones Cinderella wore to the ball. I’m not sure how anyone would wear glass slippers, but it’s a fairy tale, after all, and if mice can make dresses, I guess glass slippers are dance-worthy. Probably not too comfy, though.
There’s another story of magic slippers you have probably never heard. That’s because it took place in my own family when I was about to undergo my third cornea transplant and my autistic adult son wanted to make sure I would be alright. You can read about it in A Tale of Two Slippers.
A TALE OF TWO SLIPPERS
I have explained the process of a cornea transplant to my son as carefully as I can, high-lighting the fact that the procedure will restore vision to my right eye and bypassing the rather queasy deta…
As the cooler weather sets in and I put my sandals and flip flops in the back of my closet, I may very well have to up my slipper game and invest in more than one pair of “indoor shoes.”
I like slippers I can slide on and off with ease! How about you?
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