Ever since I was a young child, I loved walking around barefoot. I remember times when my parents would tell me to put some shoes on because I would catch a cold or the floor was too dirty. I never listened though and this continued on until my 20’s! When I was younger, like elementary younger, I never really understood why I liked being barefoot but I knew I liked how it made me feel.
I didn’t care about my feet getting dirty or catching a cold (a Hispanic myth). Being barefoot connected me to the earth in ways I never thought it would. It made me more attuned with the vibrations of the earth’s ground and its surroundings. When summer started this year, I went on this hiking adventure at Starved Rock with my partner and his best friend. I had this weird feeling about my shoes blocking my feet from the ground so I did what no one would do. I took my shoes off, I took my socks off and continued my hike barefoot. Needless to say it felt amazing, I connected to nature, to the grounds of Starved Rock. I didn’t feel such a blockage, I let the energy of the earth absorb through my feet.
Now whenever I return to starved rock, which is almost every week, I go barefoot… even during the fall!
– Esme Arechiga