Daily writing prompt

Tell us about your favorite pair of shoes, and where they’ve taken you.

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Some of my most vivid memories are also among my most painful. I recall in 2006 when my mother was going through her battle against breast cancer that I found out about the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Walk, and I decided I would sign up to walk the 20 miles per day. It was the only thing I could think to do to help my mother, even though I knew that my efforts wouldn’t do anything to cure her cancer. At the very least, I could let her know how much I loved her.

What a lot of people don’t realize about those walks is that you don’t just show up and walk for a few days. First, you have to raise money, and I did that pretty well. I’d like to think I was good at fundraising, but so many people who gave did so because they also loved my mother. She was the closest thing to a saint that I’ve met on this Earth; apparently, many other people felt the same way, and I think we raised upwards of $10,000 toward the walk.

The other thing smart walkers do in advance of the weekend is train. It’s easy to think, “This is just walking,” but 20 miles a day for three days is more than most people are used to doing. I did training walks of varying lengths for several months in advance of the weekend so when October rolled around, I was more than ready for the big event.

So, how does this relate to shoes? Early in my training, I knew I would need some good walking shoes. I’m a notorious bargain-hunter, so I went to a shoe store and looked for a good pair of athletic shoes that wouldn’t break the bank. I came away with a pair of orange and blue shoes – I think they were Mizunos – that was very comfortable. Every Saturday I would lace up and head toward downtown Atlanta to walk through different neighborhoods. I never switched to a different pair of shoes even though I was told I was probably wearing out that first pair.

The weekend came and I donned the orange and blue shoes, and they carried me through the entire three-day walk. I had them on when I finished the walk in Piedmont Park, and I held one of them over my head (as the other walkers also did) in tribute to the cancer survivors who had walked with us. They were on my feet when the picture above was taken of my mother and me. It’s been more than 17 years since that walk and I can still picture those shoes. Honestly, I wish I still had them. They’re a wonderful memory of a difficult time. Mom lost that cancer battle and we lost it with her, but for a few days I was a knight riding – or walking – into battle on her behalf.