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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Walking a mile in someone else's shoes

People often use a certain expression about walking a mile in someone else's shoes. If I understand correctly, the phrase is meant to imply that you shouldn't judge a person unless you personally understand what they're going through in life. I was thinking about it and I thought that I'd like to walk a mile in somebody's shoes - literally - just to say that I had done it. (Plus, once I'd done it, I'd have free reign to judge that person forever and ever, which would be awesome.) However, the more I thought about it, the less plausible that idea seemed and the more difficult the plan became. Let me elaborate:



Problem 1: Finding somebody who would allow you to borrow their shoes in the first place.
I like my shoes. If somebody came up to me and was like, "Hey, can I walk a mile in your shoes?", I'd be like, "......Heck no, you freak. Get away from me."



Problem 2: Finding somebody that is not only willing to sacrifice their shoes but that also has the same size feet as you.
...because there's no way in Hades that I'm strolling around in a pair of Size Sixes.



Problem 3: Destination.
Once you find a person with the same size feet that also doesn't need their shoes for an hour or so, where the heck do you even go?? I guess I'd, like... walk to the store or something? Maybe take a couple laps around the block? Come to think of it, I don't ever really walk anywhere! ... Scratch that. I DO walk a lot. From the couch to the refrigerator and back. But that's really just about it. Once I got those elusive shoes, where would I go?? Not a clue.



Confusion: What does walking a mile in their shoes actually even do? Do their shoes somehow transmit some type of magical power that helps you understand their issues? If you wore a business man's shoes, would you suddenly feel richer? If you borrowed the shoes of somebody that was starving to death, would you immediately feel hungry? If you walked a mile in the shoes of someone who just got dumped by their long-time significant other, would that walk take you right off a cliff or something? Like... how does literally walking a mile in their shoes really teach you ANYTHING about their life, apart from their preference in sneakers?



Conclusion: Walking a mile in someone else's shoes is not a good idea. It's not plausible, it's not practical, and, you know, it's just plain stupid.



Also, "Christmas Shoes" is the worst Christmas song ever written. Period. Just thought I'd throw that in there.




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1 comment:

  1. May I suggest you never read Walk Two Moons. I don't think you'd like it.

    ReplyDelete