It was a harmless question.

I didn’t have any shoes on.

But really isn’t a big deal.  I am an adult. My shoes were in my hands.

And they were broken.

I told her and she smiled and went on, walking on concrete all the way to my car. She walked on a head as she made a few more attempts at polite conversation. Then she was gone.

Maybe she didn’t expect a teacher to be leaving school without any shoes. Maybe she thought she was being helpful. Maybe she was just curious.

Still her tone has stayed with me. It was judgmental and curious at the same time.

Maybe she will end up as a character in my next short story.