Today was field day at our three oldest kids’ school. Tommy, Joel, and I tried to follow the big kids as they rotated with their classes around the field, blacktop, and gym, but it got to be too much after awhile so I let them attack the playground equipment. Sometime while playing, Tommy removed his socks and shoes.

I told him to find his socks and shoes so we could put them back on. He scrambled up a ladder and disappeared into a tube. An acquaintance’s son found Tommy’s socks and shoes and handed them to me through holes in the tube. A few feet away two little feet poked through. How cute! I thought as I snapped pictures and told the feet to stay right there!

I unfurled the balled socks to put them on the little feet. I started putting one sock on, then it occured to me if I put the shoes on, his feet may not fit back through the holes. I told the footsies to meet me at the bottom of the slide. I turned around.

Tommy was standing right behind me, looking at his shoes expectantly. It was suddenly clear what I had been about to do. A boy in an orange t-shirt appeared at the bottom of the slide. He was barefoot.

I wonder if he ran off to tell his mom some weird lady was trying to put shoes on him?

originally posted May 2006