Toe Toe Toe

Last night, just before I was going to go to bed, I had an unfortunate accident involving my rolling wardrobe door, momentum and inertia, very bad timing and my big toe. Let's just say, I have no idea how I left my toe in front of the oncoming door, especially as I was pushing it closed myself, but the two came into contact quite hard. There was yelping and bruising and even bleeding and band-aiding and icing and all sorts of fuss and now the poor thing is all wrapped up.

This incident of toe squishage has prompted thought on a very many abstract issues over the past twenty-four hours, which I've decided to share, as I think I'm boring those around me by continuously quote odd toe-injury-spurred facts.

• I've often wondered if the little toe is very slowly shrinking away and the human body is de-evolving it as it becomes apparent that it is less than necessary. I worry that one day people will be born without the undeniably cutest pair of the toes and wonder if any scientists or activists will soon form 'save the pinky toes' groups. I think they should.

• On this note, if we're slowly evolving without our little toes, is it then possible that at one point humans had more than ten toes, which have since been phased out of the human genome?

• As a little girl (and a big girl) I dreamed of being a beautiful ballerina with long graceful limbs and floaty, filmy tutus. That is, until I saw what happened to their toes! Still, despite horribly painful looking feet, I can't help but feel envious of delightful ballerinas with their neat buns and laced up shoes.

• Toes are rather odd when you look at them for long enough. Rather odd indeed. But all legged animals have them.

• Apparently, I was once told, it is impossible to walk without the big toe, because of its use in balance. Today I have been testing this theory, however, and finding that I can walk quite well without not only one big toe on the ground, but with all toes lifted off the floor and only using my feet. So. I actually think this theory is quite wrong. Although walking in heels without big toes may be quite challenging.

And finally...

• Lying in bed, trying not to let my toe come in contact with any blankets but at the same time not get frozen off in the winter chill, I found myself considering last night that I should be grateful that rare, silly accidents involving toes and doors may account some of the most physically painful moments of my life. When there are other young people in the world, people my own age, who statistics state stand a high chance of being shot at, suffering malnutrition, standing on a landmine or living their whole lives in untreatable chronic pain, I think perhaps I shouldn't be too dramatic about a sore toe. Perhaps it was just a reminder to thank my lucky stars that I was born in a beautiful country, with a democratic government, parents who can care for me and friends who are always willing to help, with the option of wearing open-toed footwear instead of closed in and ready access to first aid and health care.

All Images found from Getty.

BuzzChildxx