Boots

Around Thanksgiving time a couple years ago, a friend came up with an idea to express gratitude to someone we love. She was feeling grateful to her husband for the hard work he had instilled over the years to provide for their family and stood in his shoes to honor his journey. She posted a picture of herself on social media standing in her husbands worn out sneakers. She asked her friends to follow her lead and do the same. Her idea caught fire and many stories of gratitude about where our feet/shoes/boots have taken us, ensued.

We are all familiar with certain quotes about our journeys, walking and leading the way:

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Lao Tzu

“Great Spirit, grant that I may not criticize my neighbor until I have walked a mile in his moccasins.” American Indian Prayer.

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

My grandfather laced up a pair Army boots to serve our great country during WWII. After earning a Purple Heart and completing his service, he returned home and raised a family of six. The shoes he wore to provide for his family were those of a mailman. His work ethic, his love and his infinite wisdom were shared with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He walked through 82 years of life on earth leaving a legacy my family still speaks of with great reverence seventeen years after his death.

While wearing his Army boots, I doubt my grandfather was thinking ahead sixty-four years to a great-grandson that would follow in his footsteps. He had no idea the path he was forging.

It wasn’t just his boots my son Ben would follow into the Army, he also followed the example he lead with; to be a leader, to have integrity, to be kind and to be grateful. To teach gratitude my grandfather would recite, “I cried because I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet.” My mother tells of him sharing this with her and her siblings too. He continued for two more generations to ensure his entire brood appreciated all they had.

Integrity was at the top of the list of traits my grandfather instilled. I remember him picking a fight with my younger sister and cousin about something rather silly. They were pre-teens and he was opposing them. When they made their point he told them he agreed with them, he just wanted to see how well they could stand their ground. He made reference to what you said/believed as carrying a bucket of water around with you. If you weren’t able to back up your words, then your bucket “would have holes” and leak out. If you are going to state something as a fact, you better be able to back it up with facts.

Being a leader and being kind went hand in hand according to my grandfather. He did not believe it was necessary to fuss about making a point by yelling or crying. Playing the role of a leader was more than just your personality, it was also how you carried yourself physically.

I remember being about twelve years old and having my grandfather compliment me on the way I carried myself: (which was what he taught me) chin up, chest out, shoulders back. He said this stance shows confidence and pride in who you are and made it easy to look people in the eye when you speak to them. I taught Ben this when he was old enough to understand and he took it to heart so much that part of his legacy is the way he carried himself. I have talked about this with his high school friends and had more than one of his brothers in arms share stories with me of how Ben taught them to stand proud and carry themselves that way. One of these men recently told me that he instills this in his young recruits today and uses Ben as the example. Here is my grandfather’s infinite wisdom carrying through to another generation.

Being kind was simple. There is always someone going through something worse than you. Do we really have anything to complain about? This is my grandfather’s voice reciting again, “I cried because I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet.” Ben was bullied in elementary school by fellow students and even by two of his teachers. He didn’t like it, but he didn’t turn around and bully others. When he got to middle school, he stuck up for the ones being bullied and became their friends. This is another part of his legacy, that he was everybody’s friend. He carried this with him to the Army and taught lessons to those he outranked using kindness and wisdom and leading by example.

I have Ben’s boots, the boots he wore across the ocean. The boots he put on to emulate his great grandfather and all he stood for. These boots represent humanity, freedom, sacrifice, courage and love for his God, his country and his family. My grandfather wore them proud, so did Ben. They are both my heroes. I can only hope that my shoes, on my journey, take me to becoming half the men (human) they were. Their souls walk with me, I follow their boots one step at a time to places I have never been and promise to leave a trail for those who will follow. Whose footsteps do you follow? Whose soul (sole) is in your shoes?