White's Semi-Dress

Am I supposed to write here about my journey or my boots' journey here in this space? Maybe it's a bit of each... maybe each are a reflection of the other, maybe they are the same journey. When I bought these, I bought them to function as work boots for the weekend warrior that I was. What transpired was that I didn't wear my boots as often or as hard as other people most certainly did theirs. I tried really hard to wear them as much as I could. I'm an office worker, mind you. Many of us appear to be, too. With the hybrid work environment, I was not leaving the house. (We don't wear shoes in the house, afterall... as we discussed in the Discord.) I broke my boots in going to the grocery store and making trips to the post office. When it was still warm, I would wear the boots pushing the stroller around the neighborhood. Two kids under two when the Thunderdome started. They determined my participation in this contest more than anything. I was able to wear the boots when yardwork was necessitated throughout the Fall, but the leaves are still there in our yard from last season because I was needed inside moreso than outside. Kids came first, along with illness and injuries... the boots sat for a few weeks during the contest, but worn as often as I had reason. Are my ramblings an admission of defeat? Maybe. In the contest perhaps, but not in life. We are still fighting. We have to. We are worn and weathered. Tired and imperfect. Nicks and scratches, dings and scars, popped stitches and all. In any other year, I’d have conditioned and cared these boots as well as I do my dress shoes. But that’s not the year we’ve had. These boots were worn honestly, however. I've learned to live life in that way this past year and especially these past few months. March was better, actually. I've been able to start on a couple of home projects, in fact... so after this contest ends, I'm putting these boots back on and they will keep reflecting my life.