Why Barefoot?

Tomorrow is the day! One Day Without Shoes 2012, which I wrote about last week, is finally here. So why should you participate? How does going barefoot help anything? It's simple! When you go barefoot all day, eventually someone is going to look at you funny or even ask you why. You get the chance to educate them and they can then educate someone else. By spreading the word, more  people will be willing to act to help those who need shoes so desperately. Consider this: Many schools require shoes. If a child has none, then what? Barefoot can be fun unless it's the only option. Still doubtful? Check out the following facts quoted from www.onedaywithoutshoes.com before you decide not to participate. And if you do participate, visit the website for a card you can download and cut out. Hand these to people who question your bare feet tomorrow or just learn the info so that you can tell them yourself. 

• 30,000 people live in just one landfill in the Philippines, where children walk over broken glass, syringes and debris each day.
• 1,890,000 Kenyan children are infected with jiggers, burrowing fleas that cause painful lesions.
• 4,000,000 people have podoconiosis, a debilitating and disfiguring disease caused by living barefoot in volcanic soil.
• 740,000,000 people are affected by hookworm, a soil-transmitted parasite that can cause intestinal pain, weakness and cognitive impairment.