Brand New Boots

Remember when you were young, and wearing winter boots for the first time of the season was such a great feeling? It was snowing! It was winter! Christmas was just around the corner! There were snowball fights and sledding. Snow-brick forts and making angels.

You wore the boots while walking to school with your sneakers tucked into your backpack. You’d change into your sneakers in the coatroom before school started. But…wait…you FORGOT your sneakers. So you were the kid clomping around the classroom, enduring snickers from classmates, remaining “it” at recess simply because you couldn’t lift your feet fast enough to catch anyone.

And then…there was no way to prevent it…you felt the first indication that your sock was slipping. It wasn’t a big deal at first, but as time went on the ankle of the sock slipped to your heel. Then the arch. Then, finally, the entire sock was mashed around three of your toes. If ‘fingernails on a chalkboard’ was a physical feeling, that would be it.

I couldn’t help being transported back to all of the highs and lows of winter boots when I saw Sam with his first pair today. I brought them home, and his eyes lit up. He carried them to me, sighing happily when I put them on his feet.

He was so excited. He watched his feet as he stomped around the living room. He sat down, stretched his feet out in front of him, and admired the Velcro straps. Then they started to get in his way. When he tried to kneel, he could hardly bend his knees. When he tried to stand up, he couldn’t get his feet into position, and he kept falling into the coffee table.

He bravely suffered through for at least 15 minutes. Finally, he came to me with tears almost brimming in his eyes. “Ah duh,” he said, pleadingly. Yes, Sam, all done.

The final insult? Finding his tiny little socks smashed painfully around his toes.

Being a kid is hard work!