RED SHOES

As the pair of once glorious, but now scuffed red shoes shuffled up the dark street, the wearer peered desolately into each doorway, looking for someone, anyone. 

Josefine sighed as she was finally able to sit down. The people were everywhere “sign this” “shake my hand” “could you play at my party on Friday?” but to quit would be to face ruin. If she stopped playing piano, where would she go? what could she do? Roberto expected her payments, she never saw them again once they left her hand, for her “protection” he said… she should never have married him. 

at last… a light! the ghost of a smile flashed across the face, but disappeared as quick as it came. the shoes again shuffled towards the door, a hand groped for the bell.

“Carroline, go see who it is… tell them it’s too late for me to see anyone.”
“Yes Ma’am”

“And make sure you lock the door!”

as the door opened a round face appeared. The familiar look of sympathy drowned by penny pinching appeared “I’m sorry… we can’t do anything for you” but before the door slammed the face glanced down…

Those shoes… where had Carroline seen them? Yes! Josefine had the same pair in the back of her closet… but they were from Josefine’s childhood!

the face hesitated, but then the crack widened. a beckoning motion pulled the shoes and their wearer in.

“Wait here.”

“Carroline! I told you I’m done!”

a flash or recognition, closely followed by confusion. 

“Miss, not to be impudent, but I think you should see this person… “ and then, barely a whisper, “…her shoes…”

“Her what?”

“Shoes miss. you have the same red shoes hidden in your closet.”

 

 

something rustled... it sounded like silk. A glance. Cheap, but beautifully sewn silk. As if thinking aloud… “my sister loved silk” a hand smoothed the rags that barely held to each other. “I don’t have silk.” 

A bedraggled face looked up to greet Josephine. That look. The longing. The hope. She’d seen it all before, but the eyes. Childlike in their faith. Full of wisdom beyond their years. Recognition… then fear.

“I didn’t want to be found. I didn’t want to find them. I needed my own life. I needed my own life. I needed my own life…” 

The face went wild. Emotions spilled out in the shape of words. Repetition. Josephine sank to her knees. The shoes stared at her. Loveliness shining through the dinginess. The shoes. Josephine reached out a finger. Delicately, almost unwillingly she stroked the tip. “We were sixteen. We went to the fair and saw the shoes. We wanted them so bad. Father got us each a pair. You put them on right away. But you never came home. You never came home!” Choking on her grief Josephine raised her head. “You never came home. We were so worried. You disappeared. We looked for weeks. Gone!”

“…I needed my own life. I needed my own life. I needed my own life…”

 

 

Josephine caught her sister as she fell. Overwhelmed. Fainting from shock. “Carroline! prepare the guest room. No, not that one, the third one.” Lovingly she looked down at the now peaceful face. “Marcus! help me. Do not wake her. Carry her to the couch for now.”

 

Eyelids blinked open. Confusion. Memories kicked in. The couch… the chair across the room. Sitting up, grabbing the arm…NO!

Josephine glanced up. She was moving. Rising from her chair Josephine rushed to her sister’s side, “Shhh… It’s OK. Do you remember me? I’m your sister.”

Safe. loved. No not here… shouldn’t be here. “I wasn’t going to come home, I ran away, I couldn’t come home”

“I have no idea what you’ve gone through all these years. Challenges, loss, fear. But stay here, let me bring your mind back to life, let me love you and be your sister again. Allow me to feed you, clothe you in clean clothes, send you to a real bed.”

Tears leaped up. Throat clenched. Hear beat quickens. ‘You love me. You always loved me. I didn't know what I was doing. Should’ve stayed.”

“You did what you thought you needed to do. You needed freedom, a chance to live, a purpose. You did what everyone is afraid to do, you brushed aside other’s opinions and did what you thought you needed to do. You found your way to survive. But you’re home now. You need to continue to survive and you can’t survive much longer on your own. You were always independent, can you forget your nature and depend on me? I will bring you back to strength. I will return you to your former happy self, adventurous.”

 

- - - - - - - - Like Josephine, God is always willing to take us back, even after we run away. 

- - - Luke 15:11–32 (Parable of the Prodigal son)