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![]() THE RITUAL OF BUYING A SHOE ![]() My mother and I would go on the chosen day after school to the shoe department of Condon’s Department Store way up on King Street. We would sit in the special chairs for those in search of a new pair of shoes and the salesman would approach; first inquiring as to the sorts of shoes we were in need of. And then asking the size of shoe I would need. After the size had been announced I would remove my shoe and stand placing my foot in the special measuring device which measured not only the length but also the proper width of one’s foot. This having been determined, he would disappear behind the curtained-off doorway of the room where all the shoes were kept, row after row on long, and tall shelves. Soon he would emerge with four or five boxes. ![]() For a very brief time there was in Condon’s the Shoe Fitting X-Ray Device which was a large box of a machine which you stood in front of and slipped your feet into so that your mother, the salesman and you could peer down into special viewing screens and see your feet inside the shoes glowing green. This marvelous machine assured you of the perfect fit. It was also the first thing I ever remember that included the child as a part of the "team," for most of this process you were only the feet to be shod. I remember very little about the shoes we bought but I loved the ritual, particularly, looking back on it. We are all too busy for such rituals today or we buy things too often and have lost sight of the value of process. |