Personal Narrative: Barefoot Week

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For the first time in a long time, I was jealous of someone else’s shoes. Not just envious of their style or fit, but deep down I wanted to strip her of her shoes and socks and take them for my own. It was a fall day, not particularly chilly for most people walking to class. I felt very conspicuous, because I had been walking around for the past two days without wearing socks or shoes. For Barefoot Week, myself and a small group of other students voluntarily forsake shoes from Monday to Friday in early fall. We had a variety of reasons to participate, but the most inspiring reason was to raise awareness for people who cannot afford shoes. I was inspired to sign up for Barefoot Week because I often enjoy walking barefoot during the summer. …show more content…

The weather was mild, but even then my toes and especially heels quickly became sore from the rough cement of the sidewalks. Multiple people stared at me, and one middle aged lady even asked, “Where are your shoes?!” I watched the sidewalks carefully, trying not to step on sharp pebbles or shards of glass. By the first night, my feet were sore, dirty and rough all over. I remedied this by washing them in warm water, which helped with the soreness and rough skin. On Tuesday, I rode my longboard to class, which was a bad decision. My left foot was able to ride, but every time I pushed with my right foot it scraped against the pavement. Later on, the weather was much colder, and it began to rain. At first, splashing through the puddles seemed fun, but as the day went on, my feet were chilled and could not warm up, even if I wrapped them in my dry coat during class. My bare feet also caused my pant legs to soak up water from the sidewalk and puddles. The third day of Barefoot Week was by far the worst. Walking to my early class in forty-four-degree weather on the wet sidewalk made my feet go numb before I had even made it halfway there. At this point, I regretted the decision to be barefoot. I wanted to turn back to my room and cheat by wearing some socks or boots just for the day, but my pride would not let me quit. After my class, I decided to spend the rest of the day in the relative warmth of my room, …show more content…

This trial helped me realize how grateful I am to have the choice to wear shoes or not. I learned how vulnerable and cold unprotected feet can be, even in early fall. I could not imagine how it would feel to be shoeless in the middle of winter. It has also shown me the luxury of shoes, and given me a greater compassion for the hundreds of thousands of people around the world who cannot afford their own

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