Sapatu (Flip Flops)
In South Dakota where a cautious spring doesn't decide to stay until April and a cool spell can still come in June, the flip-flops begin to show themselves in February or March. Perhaps it's emotional; I shared that anxiousness for a change from what's become a dully, dirty white - mired with the slush of rain and the dirt from the pavement.
It's now that they are ubiquitous. Summer's worst is passed, the mosquitos have recessed, and the humidity doesn't induce sweat. A few weeks ago shopping with a friend (he bought, I observed) I noticed them everywhere: haute couture flip flops courtesy of Banana Republic, the good knock-offs (which I suspect are the same product, rebranded) at Target, and the noisy, tawdry ones they sell at Wal-Mart. It's the American way to create an overabundance of choice in a commodity: high life, low life, super-soft, leather, plastic, cute, thick, thin, worn, earth-toned, bright yellow, sporty, dressed up... find the flip flops that express you!
In Nairobi, and even more so in Kampala, I remember flip flops. We called them slippers or sapatu there and they were a major commodity as well. They were orange or blue, and their wearer(s) stretched their use until they were too dilapidated to recognize as their original form. They were cheap but beyond that they could be shared. Most pairs were uncomfortable at first. The stiff rubber wedged between your toes would begin to get sore after your first "ra-oh1." But if you stuck it out the rubber straps would apply their stretchy properties around your foot and you'd have a pair of slippers that was good for the long walks involved in getting around.
When I look at all the flip flops around I think of a connection between the simplicity of third world life and how much we want it here2; how much we've overcomplicated in life. I go to the store to buy bread and something about the 50 brands on the shelf – Whole Wheat, Country Potato, 12 Grain, Texas Toast, White, Wonder... depresses me from an unnecessary complexity.
When we'd go to stay in the village with relatives I'd leave my western shoes packed. I can't recall a fear of having them stolen, they were just impractical. My cousins let me use their sapatu anyway.
1Australian people (if you watched Crocodile Dundee) say "walkabout."
2This seems like a joke but it's not.
9:37:23 PM 
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