One Day Without Shoes

My fav pair of Toms have been through so much in the past four years. Rain, snow, and sunshine. I don’t have the heart to get rid of them because I still love them so. I don’t think I really need to explain what Toms are- Originally starting with shoes, this company started a one-for-one system, so when you bought a pair, they would give another pair to a child in need. It’s amazing how we take shoes for granted. It’s rainy and cold here in Kansas, and the grass and pine needles in my front yard stings. I can’t imagine what it would be like to go barefoot daily. Shoes protect us from cuts, disease, and infection. Also, the “no shirt, no shoes, no service” policy extends to most countries. Shoes are part of school uniforms, and when a child is provided with a pair, it is shown that attendance increases by 62%. Toms eventually moved on to eyewear- 285 million individuals are blind or visually impaired. But 80% of those cases can be corrected or prevented with general eye care. It blows my mind that so many of people are living with something as simple to reverse as cataracts (15 minute procedure) that is so readily available here in the US. So when you buy a cute pair of sunnies, someone in need gets the eye care, such as glasses, procedures, and medicines for infections. But Toms didn’t stop there. Now they sell coffee. GOOD coffee at that. It is estimated that 1.8 billion people are drinking unsafe water. That’s, what? 1 out of every 4 humans? When you buy coffee, they guarantee that you will be providing 140 liters of clean, safe water to a person in need.

Anyways, every year, there’s a day without shoes that Toms hosts worldwide, where obviously the idea is to not wear shoes. The whole point of this day, is to raise awareness and understanding. Regardless if you believe in the brand Toms or not, this is still a great day to spread statistics and hard facts. We are all the same. We are one. But some of us, out of pure happenstance, luck out and are placed somewhere with clean water and proper medicine. It’s not something any of us have done to deserve better lives, it just happens. So just remember to be kind in the ways that you know how. Be kind to those around you, be kind to the earth that sustains you, and be kind to yourself.

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