Stained Forever

I was just a kid about 9-10 years old. We went to Sears-Roebucks up in Kansas City (that's what Sears was called way back when) to buy some clothes etc. We always went to the sales floor to look at the items we were interested in and then went to the catalog order desk and placed our order because the items were less expensive at the catalog desk. Of course you had to wait and wait and wait and wait and wait to get your order processed. But hey, my dad
thought it was worth the wait to save a dollar. So we did ... we waited.

My parents let me buy a new pair of white high-top Converse basketball shoes. We didn't call them sneakers back then. We either called them basketball shoes or tennis shoes ... not sneakers! Anyway, when I tried them on at the shoe department, I could jump at least a foot to a foot and a half higher (I thought) with them on. They were super. I couldn't wait to go out for the basketball team because now I thought I could get up around close to the rim ... NOT ! I was proud of my new basketball shoes ... I was standing tall ... I was sitting in deep cotton ... I thought I was "hot stuff" because I had a new pair of shoes.

On the way home my dad always liked to stop at an old-fashioned Dairy Dip for some ice cream. It was located on the corner of 40 Highway and Noland Road in Independence. I liked to stop there too.

We all got our favorite dairy treat and then headed home in the truck ... Dad driving, mom in the middle, and me riding shotgun. It was chilly and windy so we had the windows barely cracked in the truck for some much needed fresh air.

Back in the day before the awareness of keeping the roadside environment clean by not throwing trash out the window, most everyone just threw their car trash out the window of their vehicle and littered the side of the roadway. Well were no different than anyone else. We thru our fair amount out the window too.

I remember I was sitting in the seat looking at my new white basketball shoes while riding down the road. I sat them on my lap and was admiring them. This was the first time I remember getting any new shoes ... I'm sure I had some before but I don't remember. I finished my dairy treat, rolled down the window and threw my cup out the window and then rolled the window back up. Mom, sitting next to me, almost finished her dairy treat, didn't want any more of it, and promptly threw the remains out of what she thought was a rolled down window. It wasn't. The window was rolled up. So, all of her left-over purple colored raspberry syrup fell into my lap all over my new white basketball shoes. Man, what a deal! I was horrified and heartbroken! My new shoes were ruined. Now I could never jump high again! My mom was horrified too and very apologetic. Dad was just pissed off because the juice had gotten on the window and the door panel and now he was gonna have to clean it up.

Well ... mom tried and tried and tried to get the stain off my shoes but nothing worked. I had to wear them to school with big purple stains on them ... and they were brand spanking new! Mom felt terrible and said she was sorry, sorry, sorry that she had ruined them. I forgave her because I knew it was an accident, but my shoes were "stained forever."