Stacey Miller - Snow Day

 

So, I adopted my daughter out of New York City foster care when she was 10 years old. When you adopt out of foster care, they don't just give you the kid in an emergency the way they do if you're in an emergency foster care parent, you have a getting to know each other once every weekend. So, it was my first day I was going to spend with her alone. I was nervous. It was one of those days in March when there was a snowstorm. And the snow was like up to here, you couldn't walk. They had just like single aisles on the corners. It was really wet. It was really cold. 

 

She arrived in white cotton sneakers. And I was like, “Don't you have any other shoes?” And she was like, “No, I don't.” So, I was like, “I'm going to take her shopping.” I didn't even know, because I wasn't ready to do that yet where to go, so I was like, “Where do you get shoes?” And she told me, “Payless.” I was like, “We're going to go there.” So, we went up to Payless, and I got her galoshes and we were trying on shoes. We got two pairs of sneakers. She put one pair of shoes and she said, “Oh, they look too small.” And she said, “That's okay, I can curl my toes under.” It was just so terrible, the awareness of that. And I said, “You're never going to have to do that again. We're just going to get you shoes that fit.” 

 

So, I got her all the practical shoes. We got like four pairs. And then, I felt like we needed something else. I saw these magenta glitter ballet shoes and I was, “We're going to get those.” She put on these shoes, and it was just this wonderful, wonderful thing. A month later, she moved in and I started feeding her. And in a year and a half, she grew a foot, and her feet went from a child's two and a half to a women's 8. [audience laughter] 

 

So, we were in Payless like every four weeks [audience laughter] buying shoes. But every month, we got a pair of those glitter shoes. And Payless, we couldn't find the pink one, so we get whatever color we could get. I started scouring the Payless’ around the city. Like whenever I walked past one, I'd go in and see if they had them and get a pair of shoes. And the last pair we got was a women’s size 8, and they were multicolored glitter shoes and they were ballet shoes. They were just wonderful. They were these wonderful, wonderful shoes. 

 

I thought about it when I did the money thing. And I thought, we don't have a photograph of those shoes. But the way they look is just in my heart forever, those shoes. We didn't keep any because we're not hoarders. [audience laughter] We don't have pictures of them. [audience laughter] This so clearly etched into my memory, into my heart. And now, of course, my daughter buys fry boots. [audience laughter] So, that's what happens. But thank you very much.