Daily writing prompt

Tell us about your favorite pair of shoes, and where they’ve taken you.

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At first when I saw this topic I dismissed it thinking there was no possible way I could write anything worthwhile about a pair of shoes. Perhaps it’s just my male DNA but I’ve never understood the obsession and amount of shoes some people have. Generally I think it’s a gender thing but not always as I know of many male acquaintances who have a closet full of shoes seemingly one for each outfit they wear and I know of many male sneaker-heads who collect the latest basketball shoe usually endorsed and worn by a popular player.

Don’t get me wrong, I know that a good looking pair of shoes completes an outfit and a well fitting pair of shoes is invaluable…..if your feet are bothering you no matter how good the rest of your outfit is it doesn’t matter cuz your miserable. I know this because I work on my feet most of the day in all types of weather conditions and my work boots are the most important and valuable piece of apparel I wear each day….but I don’t want to write about work boots…..egads, there’s no romanticizing about work boots and the place they take me to is work and who really wants to be reminded of work. I rarely wear my work boots anywhere else and they get kicked off at the end of the day in the garage and forgotten about until the next workday……invaluable yes, loved, also yes for their durability and comfort, worthy of being written about…..gosh no.

It’s funny the amount of shoes I actually own is I think surprisingly low. A couple of pair of dress shoes, one pair black another brown, for the rare occasions I do dress up and then I have 3 pair of sneakers, each with a distinctive function. My workout shoes are for working out and are rarely used for anything else, my old workout shoes are now my yard shoes and since they have just about used up their usefulness even as yard shoes, they will soon be tossed out or perhaps donated to be recycled and soon my current workout shoes will become my yard shoes this summer and I’ll get a new pair of workout shoes….the circle of life, sneaker style.

The pair of shoes I think about most fondly is a pair I don’t even wear on a weekly basis. They too have a specific function and it’s because of this that they are my most favorite. In the shoe rack in the garage sits a pair of hiking boots and each time I glance at them I’m reminded of the places they have taken me and the people I have journeyed with.

I purchased them before our spring break family vacation a few years ago. Since my son was a high school senior we let him pick out a destination for his senior trip. Not being one of those kids that wanted to go on the official school trip to some exotic beach locale, and to be truthful we were perfectly happy about that, he desired an adventure, an out west hiking trip and so it was decided we should travel to perhaps one of the most stunning natural wonders imaginable….the Grand Canyon.

It was a wonderful experience…..mere words cannot describe the visual beauty, awe and wonder that the Grand Canyon provides and I as a mere blogger can’t properly do it justice. We hired a guide and hiked down into the canyon. I began to realize the further we went the more difficult and arduous the hike out would be but we all wanted to go farther, as far as our guide could take us and still get back before sundown. The farther you go into the canyon the less people there are. The first hour is crowded with family’s…..a single file line fills the trail but you quickly notice that most people are wearing sneakers or some other type of flimsy shoe and most don’t have backpacks with food or water. They don’t last very long before they turn back and begin their hike out ill prepared for the terrain.

We stopped and ate lunch on a ledge, our feet dangling over the edge, the solitude and sheer vastness breathtaking. In the distance we could barely make out the river and we caught a glimpse of a couple of commercial rafts filled with people rafting down the river. Our guide spoke romantically of his hope of one day being a river guide shooting the rapids in an adrenaline fueled experience truly living life on the edge.

The hike back to the top was long, picture yourself slowly climbing stairs for hours and hours. We stopped for breaks many times and our water ran low and when we reached the rim we were exhausted, hungry but exhilarated for what we had accomplished, and although our hiking boots had performed admirably we couldn’t wait to be out of them. Later at dinner we scarfed tacos and burritos, exchanged pictures and relived the high points and low points of the day.

I occasionally put my hiking boots on and hike on some local trails but hiking in Michigan is not the same as the Grand Canyon. Each time I put them on I’m reminded of our family vacation, the adventure, the difficulty and exhilaration of a day spent in the Grand Canyon, a grand experience made better by being properly prepared right down to our hiking boots and although hiking boots may not be visually pleasing and perhaps they don’t complete an outfit they make up for it in the places they will take you.

Peace and Love….

John