The meaning of being barefoot.

We feel all the bumps and sharp edges of the ground under our feet. Things stick to our soles. Our skin is permeable - we sweat through our feet and the substances we encounter on the ground move through our feet into our bodies, for good or ill. We have to watch our step. At the same time, the sensual feeling of the ground is unlike anything else. Bare feet rely on strong muscles in the legs to work well so that we can fully feel the adaptive surfaces of our foundation.

Our feet connect us to the ground. They are our portal to the earth and all that's in it, which has pros and cons. One of the nicest places to step are the bumpy ramps at crosswalks. They're almost like reflexology patches provided by the city. Sunwarmed earth or asphalt are lovely surfaces, but in the cracks and on the edges, shards of glass from past auto accidents cluster. Being barefoot requires that I get to know my surroundings intimately. I've seen lines of dying rats trailing away from buildings into the gutters. That is one stretch of street where I always wear shoes. I also know where the fun hill is that's completely smooth and warmed whenever the sun is out.

I'd much prefer to dodge obstacles and to carry a first aid kit with me than to have my old back pain return, a sign that I've again lost my sense of gravity. I prefer to know, to be connected.

We live in a world in which our experiences are constantly mediated, no matter what our class, race or age. Most people I know were brought up to feel that any unmediated experience was uncomfortable or even dangerous. Removing your shoes is a gesture of humility and even poverty. In a yoga or dance studio being barefoot is a way to give respect to the earth and to the practice. A person whose shoes are off seems immediately more human, more intimate and physical.

When experience is mediated we lose touch with cause and effect in the world. The softness of our structured, corrective, padded shoes doesn't let us feel the impact of our bodies on the earth. For me, removing them is a small way of taking responsibility for what my presence does to the world.