The other day, I was taking a leisurely stroll around my neighborhood with my mom and my dog. It was warm but breezy, and the ground was still halfway wet from the storm the night prior. Trying to avoid making eye contact with an oncoming car full of people I graduated high school with, I looked down at my Birkenstock-clad feet. This simple act, of course, launched me into a series of thoughts about all the places these shoes have been with me.

Exactly a year ago today, I purchased these fine leather shoes online. It’s weird to have a pair of ugly shoes remind you of such a thing, but I was in such a different place at this time last year. I had just closed such a large chapter of my life, and so many things were beginning to change. These changes brought about uncertainty, and this uncertainty led to even more uncertainty. I began to question whether or not I made the right college choice, and I had a hard time coming to terms with the fact that I’d never be playing the sports I love again, among other things. Now, roughly 365 days later, there are more doors opening than there are doors closing. I’m happy, I’ve done some growing, I’ve been to some pretty great places and my Birkenstocks have been with me for all these things.

Roughly a week after my Birkenstocks arrived in Michigan from Neustadt, Germany, they were already back in Germany. However, this time, they were on my feet. They came with me to Neuschwanstein Castle and the Hofbrauhaus, they experienced living in a hostile and they even made the excruciating trip to Auchwitz with me. When I left Germany and made my way to Switzerland, they were there. They accompanied me when I anxiously rode the Eurostar from London to Paris, which was only accomplished due to the fact that I took a couple of Dramamine and passed out for the entirety of the four-hour trip. In London, they were in the presence of the Queen at Buckingham Palace and witnessed the Changing of The Guards. In Paris, they went to the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and were on my feet when I tried all types of mustard in Dijon. My Birkenstocks have been to more states and countries than I can count on both hands and both feet.

Shoes are something that are so ordinary. We wear them every day without a second thought, yet they’re with you for some of our most important adventures. They come perfectly new, and at this point, they haven’t been anywhere and they haven’t been worn by anyone. You dictate where they go, and by they time you’ve worn them a couple times, they have quite a story to tell.

Put simply, my Birkenstocks just seem like comfy shoes that serve as a reason for my friends to make fun of me. If you put a little more thought into it, though, they’re more than that. By the time you’ve had them for a year, they've been with you for quite a few miles, they've been on quite a few adventures and a lot of soil has been walked on.