Most females over the age of 16 tends to love a good high heel. It gives you a little height and it makes your legs look better, and there are so many different types and fashions that can leave you dizzy. The high heel is loved even more by the shorter population.
Well, except for me.
Being the lovely height of 4-feet-9-inches would make me the perfect candidate for high heel obsession. Unfortunately, this small being is somewhat afraid of heels. Now I am not to the point where I have nightmares about them. I just have a hard time enjoying their good use. My reasoning for this phobia is a three-parter: the fact that I can never find the right size, the anxiety of walking in them without falling and the neverending pain that comes from walking in them.
The struggle of not being able to find the perfect size shoe makes it impossible to enjoy a high heel. They're normally way too big or, on the rare occasion, too small. I do not know what it is about the department store that makes me think that size up is going to fit right. My mother always says, "Emily I think those are a little too big for you," but I just ignore her and buy the wrong sized shoe. So when it comes time for an event, I struggle even more to walk. I mean, it gives my dates a good laugh seeing me baby walk into a dance; one even offered to carry me. Maybe I need a personal shoe sizer to find the Cinderella-like shoe. The perfect fit so my walk can be less Daffy Duck and more "America's Next Top Model."
Even in a rare situation where I can find the right shoe, I still have trouble walking. I do not know if it's the lack of the rhythm when it comes to "heel-toe, heel-toe" or if I have been missing out on a secret. It is almost embarrassing how much I try to master the walk; in high school, the week before a dance, I would walk around my house for hours. But when it came time for the big night, I would be walking like a turtle. Maybe one day I will grasp the challenge of walking in shoes. Fingers crossed that day is semi formal.
The pain from walking in heels always gets me. People say it is a lot better after you break them in, but when does the breaking-in part end? I always take my shoes off and wait a little and put them on again, which I know only makes it worse. Maybe I just need to invest in some shoe padding so it will not be as bad. I am sure rush next fall will be a very interesting experience.
So there it is, my fear of the beloved high heel. I dream that one day all the dread and anxiety will go away when it comes to wearing high heels. Ask me how I am doing after my semi formal or even after recruitment next fall. I wish I could love high heels - just so I could experience a night above 5 feet.
