Sometimes I think I'm mentally 6 years old. That there is a part of me that, without thinking, has responses that are from my childhood. And partly is because, I still have the ability to surprise myself with things. It’s a weakness of mine and, certainly, an ingenuity, because, how can it be that this world, in the splendor of its decline, can still amaze me? Now at 27, it should be a thing of the past. But I can’t help it, can you blame me, my friends? I haven’t left the classrooms to this day, out of linguistic necessity, of course, but hopefully soon to continue with my professional studies.
Knowledge amazes me, intrigues me, and very often reminds me that happiness exists when you ignore everything.
If there is something in this world that astonishes me, above most of the things, is the human ingenuity. Needless to say why, just observe in your surroundings and see all the comforts that we have today and reflect that all of this is a product of our species.
And then, there is the shoehorn.
I know, I know. Many people will say "Erandi, excuse me, they use this in the shoe stores of my town." I know that. I want to assume that it’s one of modest size. One that has the function of not ruin your footwear. Besides that, I had never seen them back in Mexico, nor used them, since I never thought that stopping to take off your shoes would be a waste of time. Perhaps it’s part of the barefoot culture of the Nordics ( I have to clarify, this is something I got to know, for the first time, in Sweden), in which one walks around home only with socks. If one forgets something from the store, or someone knocks the door, then you need to get your shoes on fast, and I understand that. However, it never stops surprising me.
And at the same time, it annoys me.
For my mother, it would probably make her SUPER ULTRA angry that I would take off my shoes tied. "They get big and stretchy! They lose their shape!" I thought that was the reason why I have a problem with the shoehorn. That I grew up in a world that preferred me with shoes, than with my “patotas en el piso”; a world were white socks are difficult to wash if I am without chanclas; somewhere where I can get sick if I am barefoot; that being barefoot is why I get strong cramps (or so they say); and this is why I got the flu ... But no ... my problem with the shoehorn is simple.
LAZINESS
The shoehorn reminds me of that, human laziness. A problem that I deal with constantly. If it was an Olympic discipline, I surely would win the second place, because I'm lazy, and since the shoehorn creator would win first place, undoubtedly. I had never thought that sitting down, or even, kneeling down to tie your laces, is considered an inconvenience. Exactly how much time have been saved with this instrument? Why is this a necessity in every house? And most importantly, why did I start using it if I never did in all my life? Well, I guess this is called adaptation.