Shoes

The other night I asked Jay-R to go upstairs and get his shoes so we could all leave for the grocery store. He came downstairs in his Spiderman tennis shoes, the ones I bought him shortly after returning last year from the Philippines. I said, "Jay-R, I thought those hurt your feet?"

He shrugged his shoulders and said, "A little."

Me, "Are you sure you want to wear those? You don't have to. You can put another pair on."

Jay-R, "Okay. They hurt my feet."

So, I hand him a pair of blue tennis shoes by the front door. He puts them on.

Me, "Do those hurt your feet?"

He shrugs again. I do the toe check and sure enough, his toe is at the end of the shoe.

Me, "Jay-R, you don't have to wear shoes that are too small and hurt your feet. We will always make sure you have shoes that fit your feet. You need to let us know when your shoes are too small."

Jay-R "Thank you, Mommy." And he gives me a great big hug.



I got his school tennis shoes where he has plenty of toe wiggle room, and we were on our way.



He's been home with us almost a year. He has more toys than he can ever play with, more clothes than he will probably wear, and plenty of shoes that fit. Yet, the simple reassurance by me that he will always have shoes that fit, brought a big thank you and hug. When he was in the orphanage, I'm sure he wore whatever they gave him, that he never questioned it. I know they do the best they have with the donations they receive. The shoes they sent Jay-R home in are still 2 sizes too big...we will always keep them as a special keepsake. I guess it just never occurred to him that he should tell us that his shoes are too small.



These moments remind me of Jay-R's past and cause me to thank God for the blessing he is in our lives. Every child deserves a home...and shoes with wiggle room!