My REAL Shoe Size

I bought this great pair of boots yesterday.  Super-cute.  I needed something I could wear with short dresses in Fall or Winter, and these are smashing.  Black, suede, very slightly rounded toe, two-and-a-half-inch heel, buckles on the side.  Can’t wait to wear them!  OH, and it’s the end of boot season, folks, so yes…ON SALE!  Big sale…not some tiny little 25% off nonsense – we’re talking 60%.  (insert full bow here)

Now…my embarrassing truth…I bought them two sizes bigger than my foot.

As you know, I live life sitting down.  Because of my wheelchair-bound days, my circulation in my legs and feet is less than perfect.  I have a smidge of edema in my feet and ankles, which makes getting shoes on a challenge.  In addition, because I’m not walking around on these feet all day, my ankle flexibility is also less than what you’d see on “Cirque du Soleil.”  Your standard shoe application can be tricky enough under these conditions, but, graduate to boot-land, where you have to shove your whole foot down the entire leg and shaft of a boot, this becomes even harder.

Here’s the thing – life is not meant to be lived in ugly shoes.  Because of this law of the universe, a solution had to be found.  By calculating the scientific truths of the situation – my seated life won’t change any time soon, therefore, edema will ensue – I was able to quickly eliminate solutions that were not grounded in reality and move on to problem-solve appropriately.  Buy. Bigger. Shoes.  This allows me to slip shoes on much easier.  I don’t have to walk in them…H-A-A-A-Y-Y-Y…so it doesn’t matter that my foot is sitting in a cavernous (but adorable – did I mention they are adorable?) boot.

The downside – my foot does appear in these boots to be slightly – only slightly – disproportionately large compared to my five-foot-tall body.  Is that a big enough problem to not wear cute shoes?  Nope.

Why on Earth am I telling you this story?  Well, I think shoes are a pretty good metaphor for adversity.

Sometimes life gives us predicaments/challenges/problems/obstacles.  None of us are exempt – we all have our fair share, though they may look different in each of our lives.  But there is a solution to every problem.  Some problems are harder and take longer to solve, but there is a solution to be found.  Here are my suggestions:

1. Deal in reality.  Figure out what you can change and what you can’t.  If you can’t change it, don’t fight it.  It’s exhausting.
2. Put your vanity/pride aside.  Sometimes the solution will make your feet look bigger, but it’s still the best solution there is.  Embrace it.
3. Find the bright-side.  Does the compromise mean you get to wear the cute shoes?  This is called “Gratitude.”  Regardless of the problem at hand, there is always something to be grateful for.  Find it.

Have a problem you’re trying to solve?  Sit with it.  Be still.  Stop fighting it, and the answer will come.  You might have to buy the bigger shoes, but you still get the shoes.