When the Other Shoe Drops....

"Waiting for the other shoe to drop..."

What does that phrase mean?

From what I can gather I think it has to do with cause and effect. If you think about it, events, like a pair of shoes, have two parts. Part one (the first shoe) is at actual act. It is a word, an experience, a situation that happens in a particular moment of time. Part two (the other shoe)is the effect, the aftermath, the mess that’s left behind to be cleaned up either by the executor of the act or by those that are affected by the act.

Part two doesn’t always come immediately, in fact it may come hours, days, weeks, years later….that’s why you “wait for the other shoe to drop.”

Events, just like pairs of shoes come in all different shapes, styles and sizes. They can be small and pretty insignificant like a pair of flip flops. The aftermath when the other shoe drops is small, not very painful and doesn’t draw a lot of attention. Events can be a bit larger, like a pair of sneakers. They hurt a bit more when they drop and may leave a scuff on the floor and make a thud, but all in all, the damage is minimal. Then there is the all out heavy weight, steel toe boot kind of event. This one is not only heavy, it is loud, draws attention, damages and leaves a mark on what ever it has hit.

So, what do you do when the “other shoe has dropped?”

Well, the way I see it, you can do one of three things.

1. You can ignore the shoe, step over it, act like it’s not even there. But I warn you, eventually you will trip on it and land flat on your face eye level with that stinky shoe.

2. You can kick the shoe under the bed, the couch, into the closest…where ever you can to simply get it out of your sight. But you always have the constant nag of knowing the shoe is there and will need to be picked up eventually.

3. You can pick up the shoe, find it’s mate, and figure out why it dropped in the first place. Only then can you put on that pair of shoes and use them to walk forward.

None of these choices are easy. They all have consequences associated with them. But I firmly believe that the most productive option is the third one. It is much better to walk around with shod feet than to constantly walk on egg-shells bare footed.

If you are dealing with a dropped shoe…take comfort in knowing that you are not alone. This Mom of Many Hats has picked up a lot of pairs of shoes in her life. Some of the pairs may have gone out of style and don’t get worn that often, but others are the ones that I wear to walk into the future.