When I bought my first pair of

hiking boots my mother said, 

“What do you need THOSE for?”

To which I retorted, “For hiking.”

And she waved me away with a flick

of her hand.

When my daughter bought 

her first pair of hiking boots I said,

“THOSE will last a long time.”

To which she replied, “An investment.”

And I nodded as I laced up my 

old worn brown lovelies.

©Karen Casady2018