Of High Heels and Running Shoes

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(I wrote this last February 21, 2011.)

When I was a kid, I’d always sneaked into my mother’s shoe boxes and wore her heels.

It didn’t matter what color the shoes were: for me, the higher the heels, the better. Her shoes were the last I sought after wearing her makeup.

I loved the “tak-tak-tak” noise that the heels brought to my ears.

I felt tall on them.

I felt like a princess.

I longed for the day when I would have my own pair of high heels.

There was a tie when my mother bought me a pair of white shoes with heels for kids. I was so ecstatic! Finally, a heel of my own!

But then, we realized when I wore them that the other half was one size bigger than the other. Worse, my mother wouldn’t like to go back to the store for an exchange because she bought it from a sale.

Years after and the right age came. I finally got to own a few pairs of high-heeled shoes. I sashayed my way when I wore them. I wore them with projection; like a model in a runway.

But some good things never last: the work that I did entailed me to walk a lot from building to building, from one room to the other, from one boss’ office to another. Though walking was good, the heels took its toll on my feet.

I started experiencing numbness on my toes.

With an advice from the doctor, I sadly said goodbye to my high heels.

Thank God for flat shoes – or even the ones with one-inched heels.

On the other hand, I have always had pairs of rubber shoes since I was a kid. I think I already had all the colors the characters that I wanted for my shoes.

Every time I wore them, I felt like a heroine – I could jump, run, and dance. I could go anywhere my feet led me.

But my image of me in high heels made me forget the heroine feel of the rubber shoes – and boy, I forgot about it for a long time.

Until I got into running.

All of a sudden, my mind got pre-occupied with not just plain rubber shoes; but the correct running shoes. The right type, width and size (well, sometimes the color) now mattered to me, for I’m afraid of injuries.

It’s funny how high heels and running shoes have shaped my life. Both have served (and still serving my frustrations, imaginations, and aspirations.

I may be a model on one pair and a heroine on the other. But one thing’s for sure: as long as I have good pairs of high heels and running shoes plus the best attitude up close, I will get to each destination right on time.

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