The Soul Inside The Sole

What may appear as a normal worn pair of black wingtip style dress shoes to one hold meaning far beyond this singular description. These shoes were worn by a young man who attended a wedding. The shoes hold significance to him because they were given to him by the groom when he asked the young man to be his best man. In these shoes he stood at the alter holding the rings of two people he loved as he watched them pledged their love. It was in these shoes that he danced in celebration of the joining of two people forever.

Under the dried mud, scuffs and scratches on this old pair of Red Wing boots, lives the story of a father and son fishing trip in the hills of Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. These shoes carried the son on a trek through folage, creeks and silt to the mountain lake above. The water proofed leather kept his feet dry and warm while standing on the banks as he andhis father baited their hooks and cast into the lake. After hooking a foot long trout he reeled it in for the catch. After the fishing was done, his boots, covered in the dirt of the earth, sat next to his father's boots on the shore, watching as the boy swam in the lake with his dad.

A past soccer player who played on a select league in seattle dons these shoes everywhere. He loved the game so much that he played, practiced, and casually wore these shoes daily. The pair of size 12 Addidas Sambas rarely left his side as he watched the games on tv with his mates and his family. The young man beleived that the other players on his team were not his only teammates as he explained how these shoes had to take partial credit for how he excelled in his sport of passion. He believed that it was important to be one with his equipment in order to thirve on the field; the shoes were always there and ready to play.

These green Vans hightops scuffed from top to bottom seem dirty and broken in. They belong to a longboarder from the westside of the mountains. His favorite shoes for boarding, he would circle Greenlake in North Seattle, ride hills in Downtown Seattle, and carve the pavement anywhere he went while the wind flew through the hair sticking out over his ears under his matching flatbilled hat as he could feel the vibration of the pavement through his shoes. The loud green matched his loud and friendly personality. Whenever he wasnt wearing these striking kicks his friends would tell him they almost didnt recognize him because they had become synonymous with his character. It is in these shoes he hopes to travel to California and ride the by the beack.

White Converse are bound to be covered in anything they come in contact with. This specific pair of size 11's have been run all over campus by a Washington State University Student who wore them on every game day this year. "My lucky ones" as he called them have been in the sun, rain, sleet and snow adding a flair of white to the student's crimson wardrobe. With him every "step" of the way, from his home, to the stadium, to the after celebrations here at WSU his shoes have absorbed everything from the spilt beer, to the emotion of the roar of the stadium.

An almost pristine pair of shoes can have a story too, dirt and grime are not essential to a story behind them. These gray Vans with a technicolor inlay were a birthday present to a young student from his parents as he was gearing up to leave home to attend Washington State University. He always wanted something visually appealing with color to rock on campus. His mother put alot of thought into this gift. The gray outside representing his future school's colors and the rainbow inside to compliment his colorful personality. He takes incredibly good care of these shoes because the love that his parents bought them with meant so much to him. Everyone puts thought into the style of shoes they purchase but having a pair of shoes that captured who he was and that this was recognized in them by his parents, make these more than shoes, but a staple of their loving relationship.

A pair of Nike training shoes lay in the street accompanied by a sports drink and headphones would give to any onlooker the impression of exercise. These shoes were not just purchased, but purchased with a goal in mind. the young man who wears these shoes has shed over 20 pounds working tirelessly to better himself every week in the gym. These shoes have acted as a sort of trainer, encouraging him in the pursuit of something he set his mind to. He didnt tell anyone that he wanted this change in his life, but kept it between him and his equipment. From running mile after mile, to carrying the literal and figurative weight of the young man's desire, these shoes have helped him in transforming him into the man he wants to be; and they work together to this day still chasing the ever nearing goal he set in the purchase of these shoes.

Work is not just for any shoe to go through. These romeo style slide on work shoes are soaked with oil, sweat, metal grease, and coated with concrete residue that seem to hold them together. They have seen many days of work from a horse rehabilitaion ranch to a metal fabrication shop. A young man working to support of himself what he can wears these shoes to earn every dollar he needs. what could be seen as just a dirty pair of brown leather work shoes have been enlined with the hardwork and drive of a young working man. These shoes have helped rehab horses and clean stables and have supported the young man on long days of metal installation from the comfort of the ground to the hieghts of building roofs where they gripped the shingles holding him in place, and keeping him from the danger of falling.

A skater from the Broadview area of Seattle wears these shoes everytime he delves into the bowl or drops into the half-pipe. His first times attempting his half pipe drop-in where fraught with failure after failure. From scraped arms and knees to falling flat on his back he ran back up he ran back up the pipe with his hula girl vans. the unlaced the laces and pulled them so tight the shoes flet like a part of him. He readied his drop and leaned forward with his right shoe gripping the front of the board. Finally, he met success as he shot up the curved wall of the pipe, feeling victory it was almost as if the hula girls that covered his shoes danced in celebration. He and his styling Vans had done what he set out to do.

To someone who would see these shoes alone they might think its just another pair of Sperry's some old wasp might wear, but behind the moc-toe and gold eyelets are a story. A newly initiated fraternity member of Washington State University's Greek Row slides on his brand new brown two-tone Authentic Sperry's to complete his formal attire, before one of the most memorable nights of his life. He tightened his tie and walked into the fraternity chapter room with style and confidence and he addressed over 100 members as to why he wants to lead them as their chapter's vice president. He delivers his speech and strolls out of the room as his Sperry's making a tapping sound as he departed the room to await their vote. After the vote, he was lead back in to the sound of a roaring applause as they welcomed him as one of their new leaders for the year ahead. He now wears the Sperry's at almost evry formal event, spotless to this day.

The term "taking a walk in somone else's shoes" holds meaning here as the stories behind just a pair of footwear can open one's eyes to the experiences had by the one in them. You should never judge a book by its cover, and you should never judge someone by their shoes, regardless of the amount of dirt, or lack thereof on them, until you have heard the stories they carry with them.