In that Moment...



        

      Our lives are composed of a series of moments: some good, some bad, some exciting, some mundane, and some life changing. A particular moment in my life that I believe shaped the person I am today comes from purchasing a pair of shoes. Yes, a pair of shoes. I know that sounds very materialistic and shallow, but it is the truth. The shoes that I purchased were no ordinary shoes though, they were Doc Martens.  

       The day I received the big brown box with the classic Doc Martens logo on it, and smelled the sweet perfumes of new leather, I declared my individuality. I declared that I am myself, and not conform to whatever cookie cutter image that is projected constantly in society.                                                           

      Happily, wearing my Doc Martens to the first day of my sophomore year of high school (after painfully breaking them in), I received weird looks from my classmates. Besides myself, there was one other person in school that wore Doc Martens and she was a Goth girl who would draw intricate designs on her face. Basically, wearing Doc Martens was indicator that you are a misfit.

         The normal footwear in high school was sneakers, flip flops, or Uggs (ew). I would get remarks like, "Those are boy shoes", "What's with the combat boots?", and "Why don't you dress like a normal girl". Receiving remarks like that at the tender age of 15, I had two choices: change to conform or embrace who I am. I went with embracing who I am! I would unapologetically turn to those who made comments and say proudly, "I'm wearing Doc Martens and they're cool as hell".

Besides being durable and extremely comfortable to wear, (had my classic pair for 6 years), Doc Martens sparked my interest in underground culture, music, fashion, film, and art. The more I immersed myself into underground culture, the more people I met who felt the same as I did, and who wore Doc Martens too. Doc Martens has an entire sub-culture surrounding it, and it is filled with a merry band of creative misfits.

    Wearing Doc Martens gave me the confidence to wear the craziest clothes, which I love to wear today. I generated an aura of complete self-assuredness and freedom from them. Doc Martens' Twitter page asks its followers, "What do you stand for?" My answer is that I stand for the moments of complete self-assuredness and being unapologetically myself. So, to the teens and young adults out there in cyber space, don't be afraid to march to the beat of your own drum in your Doc Martens or as my grandpa would call them, “Shit Stompers”.