I like to fly with my shoes off.

Barefooting.
Of course, summer time is when we Okie kids went bare foot. And this is when we were growing up in Los Angeles. Something to show our independence from wearing shoes. And it has been that way for generations. And I’m sure generations to come.
My sisters hardly ever wore shoes after coming home from school. Even in their teenage coming home after working. Shoes off. Go play. I must admit I did the same. Shoes off. Go play. And recent times I can remember grandkids shucking their shoes and socks while still walking through the house. A shoe here. A sock there and so it goes. Shoes off. Go play.
Speaking of shoes off, one day in second grade at school, a fellow second grader came to school bare foot. A condition the teacher was concerned with. The student said he had no shoes that fit. A situation that happens with fast growing feet. So, the teacher sent him home in fear he might step on something and injure his feet. Not sure of the outcome after that event. All I remember is none of the kids in my class ever again came to school without their shoes. So, I guess he got a new pair of shoes to wear.
Once wife and I moved to a new culture the rules changed. We moved to Hawaii and preschoolers often came to school barefoot. Our three-year-old was not required to wear shoes or socks to her preschool in Honolulu. It certainly made it easier for the teachers to keep track of kid’s stuff.
Our daughter’s pediatrician, a gentleman from the mainland, was a big advocate for not wearing shoes for the first two years of a child’s life. He says it toughens the sole of the foot and wouldn’t inhibit the natural growth of the foot. Made sense to me.
While living in Hawaii, I agreed to co-teach a teenage class at church. There were numerous Samoan kids as well as other Pacific Islanders in class. Most of which wore no shoes to Sunday school. The other teacher and myself were often the only ones wearing shoes. Well, to each his or her own.
If we became a culture of bare foot people, I’m sure the shoe manufacturers would become apoplectic. If not wet their collective pants. The only thing I would suggest in this regard is for women to stop wearing stilettos or five-inch heels. Which often are too small for their foot size. Actually they could go barefoot. Some have very attractive feet. Especially the younger ones. Shoes off. Go play.