I had never worn shoes before.

When I saw children wearing nice shoes, I would look at them with longing.

My mother would say, "You will have many pairs in the future, just wait!"

Sometimes I did not believe her. "When is the future?" I asked her one day.

Time passed and it was nearly Christmas. Everybody was busy going to the market and coming back with bags of new things.

"Mother, are we going to the market?" I asked her.

The day before Christmas, my mother woke me up earlier than usual.

She asked me to fetch the big shopping basket she always carried to the market.

At the open-air market there, were many parents with their children.

They were buying new clothes and stocking up on food.

We went straight to where there were many different types of shoes.

My eyes were wide with amazement. I gaped at row after row of neatly arranged shoes.

After trying on many pairs, I settled for black lace-up shoes. I couldn't sleep that night.

I was so excited thinking of how I would wear my new shoes and show off to every child in the village.

After a while, I got out of bed and put on the shoes. I walked gently around the room and then put the shoes back into the box.

I lay down again, but I couldn't sleep.

I got up and tried on the shoes a second time.

I strutted around the room for a while and then put them back.

I lay down once more and tried to sleep. But I got up a third time. I put on the shoes and jumped around the room.

Then I felt tired. I decided to get back into bed.

The following morning, I was woken by my mother. "What is this I see?" she asked.

I was wearing my new shoes in bed!