Barbara J. Hamby

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Shoe Lover’s Lament

When I was in my early twenties, I was in love with shoes. I had shoes for every occasion, to match every color, and every activity. Because I was tall and had been engaged to a man who was shorter while in my late teens, I had worn flat heels often.

When we were no longer an item, I began dating two men who were both 6 feet, 4 inches tall. My shoe wardrobe suddenly included three and four inch heels. My favorites were red lizard platforms with ankle straps and four-inch heels.

When I married at age twenty-one, my new mother in law was not very old. She was slender and attractive with very dark hair and eyes. She wore what we then called “sensible shoes.” She explained that her feet were very narrow (AAA width with AAAA heels). She could not get any thing but dark colored lace-up oxfords. I hoped I would never have to wear “sensible shoes.”

Today I am much older than my mother-in-law was then and have very large, very wide feet. Those feet, so badly abused when I was younger, complain a lot these days. There are no high heels that are comfortable for me. I wear orthotics in “sensible shoes.” But I needn’t always look like a dork.

Today there are athletic shoes and well-constructed sandals such as Birkenstocks and even Dr. Scholl’s. You see them every day on feet of all sizes and shapes and both genders. Many of the heads above those feet are balding or graying. But the faces are not normally pinched with pain.