Sitting down with a great heaving breath, the man looked in front of him, at a row of shoes. Greying hair, wrinkled skin, weak voice; he displayed all the signs of an ageing man.
But in him, there was a speck of youth left like a tiny ray of sunshine making its way into a gloomy, dark cave.
His eyes scanned his immense collection of uniform dress shoes, all black, all perfectly polished.
He did not think about what had happened yesterday, or last year, or his youth. Nor did he wonder about the day ahead, or tomorrow, or the future that came ever so close.
The only thought on his mind was whether he would wear the black shoe on the right, or the black shoe on the second right.
“Today’s a black-shoe-on-the-right day,” he thought.
Carefully grasping the sole with his right hand, and the supporting the heel with his left, he manoeuvred the single shoe precisely in front of his left foot.
As he slipped his foot inside the safety and limit of the rigid shoe, he briefly thought about what his day would look like in his corporate workplace, the thought leaving him as soon as it came.
The speck of youth that was still left came back to him for a moment as he started to loop the lace around his finger and start to tie a knot.
When was the last time he ran around barefoot?
When was the last time he daydreamed?
Those thoughts came to a firm stop as he finished the final loop and gave an assertive pull and tightened the leather around his foot.
The man consciously suffocated the last remaining moments of joy and nostalgia as the ray of sunshine that made its way into the cave shut.
With another heaving breath, the man stood up, making his way to the door with a rhythmic heel-to-toe.
