How ugly are your shoes? One morning my husband told me that the shoes I had chosen to wear that day were ugly. Had I been in a sensitive mood I might have taken offense. Had I not had confidence in my choices I might have quickly ran to my closet and changed my shoes.

I happen to think my shoes were beautiful. They were purple soft vinyl material with pink mesh accents. They were Nikes bought in a moment of wildness at the Nike outlet store, which meant cheap! However the reason I chose those particular shoes was because I thought they were cute and I could wear them to Red Hat events. That particular morning I was going to work. I was going to wear purple shoes to work. Those purple shoes that I thought were cute and my husband thought were ugly happened to be very comfortable. Who would know that cute shoes could be comfortable?

Later in the day someone said to me, I love your shoes and you are so color-coordinated today. You see I wasn’t just wearing weird shoes I was also wearing a perfectly respectable purple shirt. I concluded beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The Purple People Eater probably would have loved my shoes.

Think about the shoes in your life. Do they tell a story? Do you remember past shoes that you absolutely had to keep? Are they still in your closet reminding you of a time that you want to remember in your life?

My parents owned a shoe store. I grew up in that shoe store. I remember a very special pair of shoes that a salesman gave me. They were princess shoes or at least I thought they were. These shoes had very high heels, they were clear and they had sequins on them. These shoes took my friends and I through many fantasies and playtimes. I remember those shoes because of the joy I had while wearing them. I also had a pair of shoes in the ’70s that resembled the shoes my grandma wore. Those types of shoes were popular in the ’70s but I don’t think I wore them because they were popular. I wore them because they reminded me of my grandma who had died. She always wore shoes exactly like those shoes. I also remember the shoes I wore for my wedding. They hurt my feet but they were pretty.

My daughter had a pair of shoes in high school that started cute and fresh. They deteriorated after that. However she wore them constantly. All you had to do was to notice the feet on the stage to know it was my daughter. The shoes were famous. Everyone seemed to know when he or she saw the shoes that they belonged to my daughter. People did not even have to look at the face to connect the shoes. I don’t know why those shoes had so much meaning but my daughter refused to throw them away. One year for Christmas I mounted them to a plaque with a verse and gave them to her so she could keep them forever as a memento of whatever they reminded her of.

Shoes tell our story. I used to wear high heels. I am older and wiser now and no longer think cute should take precedence over the comfort of my feet. Every once in a while Oprah will come on the stage with gorgeous shoes that she immediately takes off because they are so uncomfortable. What is the point? Those shoes tell a story and it must be “Wear me and I will promise you pain.”

There are many songs that were written about shoes. Some of these songs are: “These Boots are Made for Walking” by Nancy Sinatra Jr., “Blue Suede Shoes” by Carl Perkins, “Footloose” by Kenny Loggins, “Boogie Shoes” by KC and the Sunshine Band. These are just a few of the shoe songs.

We also have many quotes about shoes.

“A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.” — Mark Twain

“I cried because I had no shoes and then I met a man who had no feet.” — Unknown

“Between saying and doing many a pair of shoes is worn out.” — Iris Murdoch

Yes, shoes are important. They do tell a story. Shoes get us through our life. Imagine what they would say if they could talk. Looking at a person’s shoes may tell you a little bit of who they are.

But don’t forget the Old Woman Who Lived In a Shoe. She had so many children she didn’t know what to do. Why would you want to live in a smelly shoe? Because like it or not our feet stink. So do some circumstances in life. But here is an old woman that lived in a shoe because she had so many children she didn’t know what to do. It is another shoe story that is not so nice.

Our shoes tell a story. We are lucky if we have shoes that people can call ugly. I am lucky I had the choice of choosing those ugly shoes. In our country there are people who live in that shoe. In our country there are people who may not have the choice of ugly shoes. How far do we walk in our shoes to help them?

“You never truly know someone until you have walked a mile in their shoes.” — Unknown

Wells resident Julie Seedorf’s column appears every Monday. Send e-mail me to her at thecolumn@bevcomm.net.