In Praise of my Barking Dawgs

I want to pay special tribute to the over-used, under-appreciated, unsung heroes of the body… our feet.  That’s right, those two extensions at the end of your legs that take the brunt of the work and ask nothing in return.  There is no national “be nice to your feet day” (that would include a nice soak and rub); no thanks that in a normal day, a person will take from 8,000-10,000 steps (multiply that by your weight and you start realizing how much pressure your “dawgs” put up with in a day – no wonder they sometimes are howling for you to sit down and take a load off); and no real admiration is shown that your feet house a complex system of 52 bones (that is 25% of the bones in your body), 66 joints, 214 ligaments and 38 muscles and tendons.

The foot has another impressive statistic of having more than 250,000 sweat glands each, making your feet among the most perspiring parts of the body.  In one day, each foot can produce more than a pint of sweat! I am taking the above-board approach of looking at this and am quite willing to be daunted that I have such power of creation within my control.

For centuries feet have been squashed into shoes a size too small, toe cleavage has been exploited in strappy little sandals, small toes have been pinched and heels elevated to nose bleed heights in the name of fashion.  Yet, our feet willingly go along with us wherever we need them in the hope of a little respect.  Without hesitation they respond when we need to jump higher, run faster or stop on a dime.  They get us to where we are going, so why then do we succumb to calling them by derogatory names and insulting their rightful claim to fame?

Is it because sometimes, when they have had enough and the communication to the brain is not in functioning mode, that the feet take to rebelling and have the power of shutting down the whole system? Corns, blisters, ingrown toenails, calluses, athletes’ foot and the dreaded bunion are only just the beginning of a major revolt.  Fallen arches (and I don’t mean McDonald’s), Achilles tendonitis, orthotics, hammertoe, arthritis and a creeping crud that infiltrates under the toenail can all stop you in your tracks.  These are the calls for help that our feet are giving us and we must listen to.

Speak well of those twinkle toes, pamper your dancin’ dawgs, soak those stinkers and when your head is thinking Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik, reconsider the long term relationship you will be having with your feet, realize that Sex isn’t always in the City and that shoes don’t make the man.  Maybe you won’t go all the way to the Birky or earth shoe (with negative heel technology) side of town, but try a sensible shoe with good support that will get you and your feet happily through the day.  If you take good care of your feet, they will take good care of you…now that I am older, wiser and still have many more miles to go, it sounds like a fair trade to me. 

Cynthia A. McClelland, curious observer of the obvious with interpretations of the oddities of daily life.  Mother, wife and lover of the furry, resides in the north Lake Tahoe area.

Cynthia A. McClelland © 2003-