I was a woman once, who marched into a sacred place in steel capped boots in summer.
I am a woman now, who walks into an office in Ugg boots on cold days.
When the suggestion was made I should write about the transition between those two states, those two different women, really, should put that journey out there for the world to share, I felt excited and scared wittless simultaneously. Needless to say that the loveliest of Carolines had put this challenge upon me at just the right time. Didn’t I just finish a journal entry musing about my inner urge to write, the thousand started pieces and why I nevertheless don’t do it, not really, not to a finish? Didn’t I just come to the conclusion that my writing lacks 2 essential things – purpose and intention? I could not quite put a framework around it, though. But – the Universe provides and as always, thank you Caroline.
Written words are my favourite secret love and I have bits and bobs of diary entries dating as far back as last century’s 90’s. Looking at their ebb and flow, I was never a consistent journal keeper, these words tell the story of how I became the woman in steel capped boots. The woman that was perceived, described and even celebrated as arrogant, hard and downright scary. She started out as we all do as babes; lovely, innocent, gorgeous, in tune with the universe. But that is not actually the important part of the voyage, though I am sure there will be tales of that as well.
The marvellous, beautiful, exciting, hard, tear-streaked and powerful part of the journey is rather how that woman found herself re-connecting with the gorgeous little girl. The last couple of years, that find me wearing Uggs to keep my feet warm and fluffy, leaving the steel armour behind.
How I am going to write this – I don’t know. And the fact that I am ok with that, so much so that I am willing to leave it there for the world to see, is going to be one of the entries for sure. You don’t have to have the journey mapped out to all details and its end – you just have to start walking.
I will write a piece a week. Stories, musings, articles, reflections, or whatever form the idea wants to be packaged in. Over time, they will narrate the journey that was taken, the heartaches mended, the lessons learnt and the wonderful world discovered. And maybe – just maybe, they will find their way to someone who needs to hear them.
Steel Caps to Uggs 