The Shoes.

I have these pair of shoes. For some reason they make me walk at an angle to the ground. Not like that angle chics with heels walk in but like a side swagger bordering on a stumble. I love these shoes. My brother hates them. He says they look like I bought them in shags. Like BATA was having a bad day when he made them. I don't care. I like them just the same.

I wear them when I want to walk a little taller without actually being tall. I wear shoes to make my legs get noticed or for comfort. These are those in-betweeners that I wear just for myself. Because I like that they transform me from the 18 year old look alike to a sort of late 20's career looking type. They move me from young and flashy to composed and together. I can walk for miles in them and look like I haven't walked a day in my life.

I bought them with the last money I had from a terrible place and they sort of remind me that I am not that person any more. They are not fancy enough to grace events. They make me feel like I am above gracing events. They are unpretentious and together. They look like they'd last me a lifetime. Like I could pass them to my grandchildren when the time comes. With only a box of kiwi and a shoe brush. Like I could pass on the legacy of how I transformed. Like I ruled the world because of the shoes on my feet.

They are everything that I want to be. Simple and functional. Unpretentious and stable. Moving on with my work not caring whether anyone notices. Black leathery with a heel strong enough to walk a thousand miles and then just throw in an extra one for good measure.They don't have that "lazy" look of stilletos or that "run you over" look of flats. Just a simple, pleasant look that should be on a serious woman who looks like she's going somewhere.

I bought them thinking that I needed that look. That look that told people that I was put together and balanced. That I am dependable and stable. That I won't make you walk at an angle theta off the ground. That you could count on me forever. That I could take you to the ends of the earth and still be there when you get back. That look that says that everything will be a-okay!

Yes, they look like they are from shags now that I look at them critically on my feet. He may have had a point. But they do something that no other shoe in my wardrobe does. I don't get blisters on my big toe and my right ankle doesn't hurt insistently and I definitely don't break my toe nails. They make my life all the easier for having them.

They are shoes I can rely on. Yep! Definitely shoes I can believe in.