Greetings all, I hope everyone is fine and dandy as we draw close to the end of the seventh month. The wordle game was conquered earlier but the octordle one defeated me at the last turn, darn those sinister puzzlemakers! It's a good way to engage the brain with a few words though. Anyway, enough of the waffle Mr H and let's express gratitude and love to Marion, Anna, Jo, Kanu and Nora. It's great to see this blog getting out to the world.
What comes to mind today is a phrase called know thyself. I'm sure you may have come across this before but let's look into the minutiae (I won't lie, I had to check the spelling of that word) of this expression. I believe this would be best served with a little example in a short story.
Let's picture a shoe. This shoe walks (well he would) into a hall populated by hats. He tries to get their attention and alas those hats kind of look down on this scruffy looking beast. After all, the hats are used to the refined air of the higher echelons and why an earth should they deign to waste their valuable time with a wretched shoe?
Ah, our poor hero sighs. He looks up to those lofty heights and wishes he could just maybe float on up there. He thinks, what can I do, I'm merely a shoe, who's feeling blue, let me think anew, I don't want to feel blue. He goes away, inflates his soles and goodness, he's added a couple of inches to his height with such an action. He even gives himself a good polish and tidies up those long laces. His uppers bear him to his fall height and with supreme confidence he goes back to the hall of hats.
The hats are having a good discussion about who is the tallest. A little baseball cap is being shot down by a Fedora until a Stetson calms things. It's at that moment a Trilby spots a lone pair of shoes traipsing across the floor.
"Good lord, would you look at that? Is that the same chap that was here a week ago?"
The baseball cap bursts into laughter.
"Hey bud, you're in the wrong place. And what the hell is that get up you got going on there?"
The hero raises himself to his full extent.
"I'm looking to join you. I'm sure I've a lot to offer."
Oh how the hats laughed. The temerity of a loafer trying to be a boater was just too much.
"We didn't realise we'd booked a comedy act. Hey, someone call security will you?"
An armoured helm came down and promptly showed the shoes the floor beyond the door.
"Get out and don't let me catch you here again," he scowled.
The poor shoe wept from his eyelets. How could they be so cruel? He trudged through the muddy streets knowing he'd never amount to anything. He thought of throwing himself in the trash, maybe they'd ship out to some far off land or just rip him apart and recycle.
"Hey, why are you looking so sad?" asked a passing plimsoll.
"I've had enough. I tried to join in society and they refused me again."
The plimsoll scoffed.
"Screw them. I wouldn't go in there with those upper class toffs. Anyway, why the hell do you want to join the hats?"
"Because I've had enough of being a shoe. I'm always being looked down on and stepped on. I don't fit."
The plimsoll put a soothing emlace around the loafers collar.
"Hey, you fit just fine, in fact I'd say you're a size eight and think on this. Those damn hats wouldn't even exist if it weren't for us shoes. I mean, the milliners got to have foot wear doesn't he? No footwear, no work, no hats. Mind you, maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing."
The loafer paused in thought for a moment.
"I never thought of it like that."
"Damn right, and you aint telling me that those ladies in the high heels don't have more than enough style than those airheads in there. I mean haven't you seen Sandy Stiletto just lately. She'd walk over them hats when it comes to panache you know."
The loafer hopped in approval.
"You're so right."
"Course I am. You want my advice. Don't waste your time with the hats. They aint you and you sure aint them. Come hang out with us shoes down the social club."
The loafer brought fresh warmth up through his sole. The plimsoll beckoned him to follow and looks of approval greeted them both when they brushed by the Doctor Martens on duty. At last, the loafer accepted just who he was.
fin
Ok, a bit of a stretch I know but it's a reminder for us to be who we are. Don't try and be something you're not for when you do you'll not be you. When you do try to do something you're not capable of, it can backfire spectacularly and sometimes you'll get that message, "kid you aint got it in you". This isn't a problem and instead find out what you can do, and trust me that is plenty.
Well that was a fun little tale and I do hope it entertained. Remember everyone, keep reading.
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