She Was Dying To Have High Heels

As soon as you are seventeen, her mother said. You can wear them to your graduation. She was thrilled the day she got to try them on. She tried to pirouette, but it was not graceful. You will get used to high heels, her grandmother said. It was a lie. She never got used to them. They hurt her when she walked. They pinched her toes. She could not believe she ever wanted them. She wore them twice. Once to prom and once to her graduation. Her feet limped with blisters for weeks after both. She never wore them again.