Alas, today is a sad day indeed. After nearly six years, my favorite black Reef flip flops have bitten the dust. Or the mud, if we want to be literal.
I know I should not get so emotional about the unfortunate, untimely demise of a pair of sandals, but truth be told, these flip flops have tread across the globe with me in the most literal sense. I first bought them the summer before I moved to the Philippines, in 2006. They have since walked me through miles and kilometers of space, serving as my most dependable sidekicks (pun intended) in that six-year time period.
I wish I could recount every place my flip flops have traveled with me to, but I’m pretty sure that prior to the World Race, the list included Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, China, England, Sweden, Canada, Malawi, South Africa, Australia, and multiple states in the US. The World Race has understandably added a hefty handful of other countries to that list. I suppose it would be not the least bit preposterous to say that these beloved shoes “walked across the world.”
Despite walking bravely through miles of varied terrain, such as hiking across the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada’s, slipping through the Ningxia Desert of China, marching through the crowded streets of New York, and traipsing through the pebbled dirt paths of Africa, my flip-flops finally surrendered in defeat to Moldovan mud. The rains that greeted us upon our arrival in Chisinau created swiftly flowing rivers of mud that were just too much for my downtrodden slippers.
So, with great sadness, I bid farewell to my beloved traveling companions. May you finally rest in peace, dear Reefs, knowing that you have truly conquered the world.
