I have weak feet. They have always had tender soles. My arches have been so weak that it felt like there was some little bone popping with each step. And during the month of February, my toes ached for no apparent reason, making the wearing of shoes unbearable. Luckily, my highschool allows sandals year-round.
As a person who believes that the body should be allowed to be free of clothes, I recently made the next logical step that shoes are indeed clothing for the foot, preventing the foot from contact with the world.
There is a line in a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins, a poem discussing how civilization has smeared God's creation- but creation is never completely defeated, about being shod. Just a throwback to sophomore theology class.
But anyway, I suddenly realized that I'd like to be barefoot a lot more. Sure, my feet will experience some discomfort at first, but it will be just glorious to constantly be in direct contact with my environment all the time as I grow accustomed to it. People were obviously barefoot for a long time before shoes were created. It is the natural way to be. And the surfaces people walked on weren't any safer back then than they are now.
There is evidence that the human form developed as a result of gaining the ability to run. And that running was obviously done barefoot! Shoes make all of us, even runners, lazy. So you can be sure that I'll be spending a lot of my time barefoot this summer. And maybe try a little barefoot running while I'm at it.
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Update [5/18/05]
I forgot to say that I walked through the park sunday for a good part of the afternoon barefoot. It was a fun time. The little pebbles on the asphalt paths and the sweetgum balls caused some problems, though.
I played a pickup game of soccer barefoot with fellow seniors after the senior/faculty luncheon. Which was, again, very fun. I have a huge blister on the ball of my right foot. I can't wait til my feet can easily withstand such use.
Foot odor is only caused by wearing shoes. If your barefeet stink, try washing them and then not putting shoes back on. Feet need air, too.
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I am a total believer in barefooting as much as I can. I truly am convinced that my feet suffer from shoeitis. But like all things, my feet do suffer from an occassional blister and/or callouses. And now because of constant contact with the bare ground; I have flat feet and have constant heel pain.
ReplyDeleteSo for right now, I will have to wear constricted shoes. My feet will live freely through you, Tom.
Tom,
ReplyDeleteStumbled on this post almost a year later... hope you've had great barefooting experience and your feet and spirit are feeling better without the shoes! BTW ... I've just added a link to your blog from mine ... you write good stuff.
Peace, Ryvr