As I stepped out of my house the first thing I noticed wasn’t the
beautiful sunny sky, it was all the glass on the sidewalk. Yeah this is going
to be a long day, I thought. As I
made my way to campus I moved off the sidewalk and onto the grass any chance I
could. The feeling of earth on my feet instantly conjured up memories of summer
days as a kid. I remember those
sunny days well. Jumping out of
the cow trough pool, running over cool soft grass, then onto the hot sidewalk,
slowing down as I hit the rough gravel driveway, making my way to the ’54 chevy
pickup that had been heated by the summer sun, creating a wonderful place to
dry off. I am quickly brought back
to reality as I step onto the top of a sick and pain travels up my leg.
As the day went on my feet began to feel the pain of going a
whole day barefoot. Now instead of
enjoyable memories, I thought of the 300 million children worldwide who daily
go without shoes. Unlike the barefoot
enthusiast in developed countries who walk around in their ‘vibram fivefinger’
shoes these children don’t have any protection from the ground and are highly
at risk of contracting hookworm infections.
I ended the day in serious pain barely able to walk the 30
feet from car to apartment. Soaking
my feet in a bucket of hot soapy water I reflected on the day. Cody Lundin an outdoor minimalist has
been going barefoot for over 20 years.
Lundin says going barefoot slows him down from the fast-paced culture of
the U.S. allowing him to feel and think about every step he takes, making each
on count.
Here are some WebPages on this topic:
Cool, Jake... This is great! I wouldn't be able to go a day without shoes (unless I was staying inside!). Best of luck in the next 29! You can do it!
ReplyDelete