About Pink Power Slippers

Who knew what one pair of pink fuzzy slippers could do?

I saw them in a bin at the Acme, a local grocery store where I'd gone to pick up a few items for dinner. They were pink and fuzzy slip-ons and they were on sale for $3.99.

I purchased the slippers during a time when I was helping a good friend who was battling brain cancer. I was spending a lot of time at his house, helping him as counsel and manager of his company, and it was on one of the grocery runs for the household that I found them.

My friend's diagnosis was a very serious one that he faced with courage and strength but it was one that forced physical and mental changes on him. Nevertheless, he never let his humor and charm go away. They were the parts of his character that endeared him to people. Well, that and the athletic prowess and fierce competitiveness that put him in the spotlight.

The magic of the slippers was more about what they meant than what they looked like. They were comfort at a time when illness and uncertainty were present. Wearing them brought a feeling of power, like things could be fixed. Wearing them was just fun because they were the go-to shoes! I'd purchased three pair and shared them with friends, and since one of the women was around the house as well, there were often two of us wearing the slippers. It was a shared secret that these were the "pink power slippers."

Throughout several months, before my friend lost his battle with his disease, the slippers were an omnipresent part of the household. After he passed, my slippers came home with me. A less than perfect pink, with worn soles and matted fur. I kept them for awhile and looking at them brought back both happy and poignant memories. I missed my friend and mourned his loss - still do - but having those around for awhile brought a smile. They are gone now, worn to a point they all but fell apart, but they left a lasting impression. 

They had worked their magic.