People Who Put Their Feet Up

There are two types of people in the world.  People who put their feet up, and people who don’t.

I was on a train traveling from Wuhan the other day to Shiyan, Hubei, China.  It was about a 5-hour train ride and I was sitting in a seat with two open seats across from me.  Across the aisle there were also four seats, two-side-by-side facing two other side-by-side seats. This was the setup of the train car. Many people were sitting with family members or friends, playing cards, eating, and talking.  It was a noisy train; there was a lot of laughter, chatter, and borderline screaming.  Despite the raucous environment, it was fun and lively—most people seemed to be happy.  I was reading and relaxing, I even had two college students visit me for about half an hour because they (like most people on the train) couldn’t believe that there was a foreigner on the same train as them.  They asked me questions about where I was from, what types of movies I like, what types of music I listen to, why I was in China, and how I liked China.  After they left, I continued to read.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a borderline-contortionist and sit in positions that make my legs look like pretzels; otherwise, I stretch my legs out and like to have them elevated.  This is just how I am comfortable.  While I was reading, in order to get more comfortable, I took my shoes off and rested them on the open seat across from me.  Across the aisle from me there were three older men and one teenage boy sitting in the four seats.  I could see out of my peripheral vision that these men were pointing towards me and talking about me, but I continued to read.  Then, the teenage boy, who spoke in broken English, tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Sir, can you please put your feet down?”  I looked behind him and saw two of the three men smiling and it was hard for me to distinguish whether or not the boy was being serious, since two of the men were smiling and the rest of the train seemed as if it was about to explode from all of the energy the people playing cards, talking, and shouting on the train were creating.  Surely the least of anyone’s worries should be the quiet foreigner sitting in a corner, minding his own business, reading his book?  I smiled back at the boy and asked, “Are you being serious, or just kidding?”  My feet were still up, and the one man of the three who was not smiling began to say something to the boy in Chinese in an irritated tone.  The boy then told me, “Yes,” and emphatically added, “Can you please put your feet down.”

My initial internal reaction was outrage, but I stopped and thought for a moment before I acted and allowed myself to get upset.  Rather than blow something so small out of proportion and make a mountain out of a molehill, I smiled at the men, put my feet down, and continued to read. 

As I continued to read, I could still see the angry man pointing towards me and talking in a flustered tone, but I ignored it and resolved not to get upset over something so small.  After about a minute or so, the boy complimented my shoes. I thanked him—admittedly coldly because I still thought the situation was ridiculous—but about ten minutes later the boy and I engaged in a conversation about the prices of shoes in the U.S.A. versus the prices in China, and how they are surprisingly similar (and sometimes more expensive in China, even though many of them are made here).  I believe the boy’s gesture in complimenting my shoes was made as a means of reconciliation.  This happens often when people do not want to admit that they or others might have acted in the wrong, but I appreciated it as a gesture in good faith. 

I endured the train ride, less comfortably then I could have, but I was OK, and I was able to act kindly towards the man sitting across the aisle from me and be at peace with him.  I have found that this non-confrontational approach is the best way to handle these situations, because there is no reason to get worked up about something silly, especially when dealing with a person who has proven that he gets worked up about silly things.

This situation reminded me of a similar encounter I had at a previous teaching job I had.  During my prep-period, I always had my door open and I sometimes sat with my feet up on my desk.  One day when I had a quarterly review with the principal of the school, he informed me that a colleague of mine had reported to him that I rested my feet on my desk and she/he felt that it was unprofessional.  I distinctly remember the baffled and annoyed look that I displayed on my face and feeling astounded that someone would tell the principal about this, and that the principal felt it was something of concern to bring up.  In this instant, I also approached the topic at hand as my problem, rather than someone else’s.  Even though my face clearly showed how I truly felt, I stated it would not be an issue anymore.

From that day on, I always shut my door during prep-periods, and continued to put my feet-up on my desk.  Out of sight, out of mind.

I have never been one to follow rules when I see no purpose in them, especially if I was never informed of or agreed with the rules to begin with.  I find that those who don’t put their feet up on desks do not think this way.

I can almost assure that the teacher who was upset with me for putting my feet up on my desk is the type of person who does not put his/her feet up.  If he or she was not worrying about his or herself, but rather about my feet, I believe his/her priorities were out of balance. 

There are people who are so blinded by the values that have dogmatically been instilled in them from certain religious, governmental, cultural, social, or educational institutions that it would be foolish to argue with them, because their insular ways of thinking will always lead to an “I’m right and you’re wrong” conclusion.  That’s why it sometimes seems like people who don’t put their feet up have a stronger voice or are more powerful, because they allow themselves to worry about and make commotions about trivial, unimportant things, like people putting their feet up, while people who put their feet up, typically find it senseless to drain energy arguing about something so inconsequential.  People who put their feet up don’t have the time to worry about small differences in beliefs or behaviors because they are focused on things that really matter, like the book they are reading or the lesson plans they are creating.  

Do yourself a favor and put your feet up, but shut the door if you have to.