Shoe Personality of the Week: 4/23/2012

My Daddy had these boots. Or was it my mother? It could have been both but the truth is that my mother would have actually hiked before my father would. Da Mudda is an explorer. & a fearless 1 if her truth is only told through the eyes of an awed daughter. It was with my mother that I climbed mountains, hiked, fished, pitched tents, biked, & skied. It is from my mother that I have learned great determination & steadfastness. It is from my mother that I derive my strength.

& the desire to wear these boots.

One of my fondest memories is of my 6th grade trip. It was called Bear Trap & the whole 6th grade boarded buses that climbed a mountain & deposited us in cabins with fireplaces & bunk beds. I learned camp songs in music class that my then best friend, Suki, played on her guitar. I sang along to Tears For Fears & the Eurythmics on the bus ride up & Whamm! & The Culture Club on the way back. I ate spaghetti while singing "On Top of Spaghetti." While we trapped no bears we did learn to do some junior spelunking & learned to rappel. It is this trip & my mother's determination to expose us to nature that has created something of an adventurist in me.

& a return to the desire to wear these boots.

My Life could be what some may call topsy turvy. I tend to see it differently. I am becoming unencumbered from the things that have stood stock still in the way of chasing my dreams. I am a living example of be careful what you ask for or you just might get it. Something about the path I presently walk was clear to me 5 years prior to this day & I gave myself 5 years to fulfill this goal. To ensure I don't linger here & miss my cue to move on to bigger & better things, this part of my Life has begun throwing stones to remind me that it is time to turn left or right, but walking straight is no longer an option. I pay attention to road signs & listen in English. Today I'm trying to figure just that. Will it be right or will it be left? I'm not afraid of either direction & feel like that little girl in the 6th grade staring down a mountain & knowing I didn't have any choice but to get down. I wasn't afraid then. Nor was I afraid when it was time to climb a tower at 29. Or leap off an edge with no net at 35. There have been several literal & figurative mountains in my Life. The last physical mountain has taught me it's time to stick to figurative--courtesy of Venezuela 2011--but not out of fear.

I look forward to putting my feet into these boots that were so huge to me when I was little more than a preschooler. Instead of playing in them I can now don my own & prepare to explore what lies ahead. I will be charting new territory & placing my flag on new discoveries of self, master of my own destiny. Let the climbing begin.

Watch me move [wearing these boots].