Being outdoors in bare feet is one of the great unsung joys of the kiwi way of life. It adds a whole extra dimension to the experience of being outside. Even the risks of burning hot sand on the beach, or of stepping on something sharp and/or unpleasant just adds a certain frisson. My mother understood this, as do my children. For some reason I don’t understand, “normal”people often find the practice objectionable. I lost track of the number of times people told me to put shoes on my children’s feet when they were young. It was up there with “why don’t you brush their hair?” and “why don’t you feed the little one?” How miserable life would be if you couldn’t be a little bit feral from time to time.
Photo of my children suffering from poor parenting. See the pain in their eyes.