Let's Take Them Under Our Wings, Part II. . .

 

These are not the shoes I purchased for Young Master Paul, which are new, but they look very similar.

 

The Young Master recently turned 12, so I did something very similar to that my late mother did for me at 12.  

I purchased (discounted items since he is still growing) Paul a pair of Bass Weejun loafers, a navy blazer (it fits him amazingly well), and a new dress belt to go with the khakis, ocbd shirts, and Argyll socks already in his rotation.  I presented him with the new items last night before our (still for now) routine bedtime reading, and he was impressed.  Surprisingly. 

"Wow!" was all he kept saying as he tried on the blazer with shoes and checked himself out in the mirror.  I explained that, with the holiday season fast approaching, he is old enough now to dress for special dinners and occasions a few times a year.  

"But don't worry," I added.  "We won't send you to school in these."

"Thank you, Dad!" he answered with a grateful look as I helped him hang the blazer and stow the new shoes in his closet. 

I also took the opportunity to give him an extra shoe brush that I've had lying around and explained the rudiments of shoe care quickly to him before we resumed the latest Harry Potter novel.  But I'm looking forward to a longer session when we'll actually walk through the process of shining our shoes together like I used to do as a child with my late father.

Hey, it's never too early to begin cultivating a sense of occasion, personal style, and the habit of occasionally wearing something more formal than the usual jeans and Rugby tops as great as those are during off hours and weekends.

-- Heinz-Ulrich