If we’re not careful, it’s entirely possible to be born, live, and die without ever having touched the ground with the soles of our feet.
Walking barefoot, like sleeping on the ground—a practice commented elsewhere—is a profound lesson.
This approach to the world is based on information directly gleaned by the soles of our feet on the earth’s surface.
It reveals the spontaneous way of connecting with reality, of letting life flow through us, without unconsciously striking the ground with our plastic soles or stifling the richness of the lessons present on the ground itself within the thickness of our shoes.
These lessons trickle down, carried by capillary action from the earth’s core, and flow continuously along the surface of forests, paths, and fields.
Also, the foot against the asphalt reveals all the artifice of a life of optimization through ignorance, all the suffering that ensues, an unhappy harmonization with the rhythm of life.
The barefoot world demands constant attention. It reminds the barefoot traveler of the diverse landscapes we traverse, while shoes lead the walker to the illusory belief of a painless, artificial, and monolithic path.
Go barefoot, listen to the earth, and hear the deep pulse of nature resonate in the soles of our feet.
Notes & Silence 