By Wein P. Gadian
KISMET
HAVE you ever wondered why we always look for our tsinelas when we get home from office or school? Is it because we’re used to it or has it become a habit? Have you ever asked yourself how long have you been doing such? Or, maybe it’s our culture to change into our tsinelas when we get home.
While some prefer to use their shoes or to be barefoot, we Filipinos would always look for our tsinelas.
What connotes this small yet essential pair of objects is the “idea of having something you can’t live without.” Something we’re comfortable with, giving us a soothing effect and calm sensations to make us simply sit back and relax. Our own tsinelas. Come to think of it, it’s like your “SOLE-MATE.” When you’re in the middle of a journey and your soles ache…voila! — there goes your tsinelas! A moment when you realize it is important.
A moment like when you’re lost and alone but you feel secure because you can still walk with it and you won’t be alone – no matter how long the road would be. Whether you like it or not, you just have to admit, it’s going to be your partner in every journey. Too often, we forgot about the importance of these two objects comforting our feet but then, here it goes…we all need this comfortable thing that gives us the relaxation, the security we dream of.
Slippers — do you know they are also our partners? In Korean, it’s “jipshindo jjaki itda” or straw slippers. It connotes that wives are like slippers to their husbands. Every time they arrive home, their wives become the most comfortable person to be with. A loved one — whom they could simply tell everything they want, who’ll be there to bring them joy, peace and love.
Our tsinelas are like our significant other, someone we could spend our time with and we can share with our intimate moments. It’s our loved one who give us a sense of freedom. Someone who brings that smile on our faces when we wake up everyday, who reminds us that life is beautiful. It’s also like someone who brings us the good things in life but comes with the risk of learning to let go.
Like when we buy a new pair in exchange for an old one, we always look for those same tsinelas. It’s like when we experience breakups or heartaches. We don’t actually forget what happened, rather we put it in our memory until someone new comes to bring us joy. It is then that we learn to let go.
Oftentimes, we choose our tsinelas by its brand name. The more expensive, the better — but only to realize that having it gives us all the worries. We worry that it might be lost, get dirtied, or worse, broken or damaged. The same way for those we love. Too often, we set criteria for them, only to regret it in the end.
When we’re in love, at times we don’t know we’ve changed. The usual things we believe are lost and we find new meaning in life. No matter how rough the road, we feel secure because we’re not alone, we’re with our loved one.
Like our tsinelas, it changes us once we arrive home and put it on. Alas! Our feet are free! Comfort, that’s what it’s all about, and meeting a soulmate is also the same.
No matter what the world tells us – what matters is we’re comfortable with him or her and, that someone will not just bring us comfort but would be there to give us LOVE. Ask me if I found mine, I would gladly tell you. But if you ask does he know or is he comfortable with me? I don’t know.
All I know is that I would always love my slippers and if I get lost, I’ll find my way looking for it. Comfort – yes, I always want it – and I’m glad to go home knowing a pair of tsinelas is waiting for me. If someday, it will be a loved one, then I’ll be more blessed. So have you found your tsinelas?
