It’s that time of year again! Time for all the socks with no mates to go be with Jesus! RIP little ones
Seriously people! What’s with socks? The response to my status was overwhelming! Throughout the shoe and sock wearing world (which I recognize is not everywhere and I envy those places where there are no socks or shoes…oh bliss!) it is the cry of the land. Where do these socks go? In what universe do they live? On what planet do they reside?
It’s an economic as well as a social problem and it has to be a conspiracy of the sock industry. There is NO way this many socks can disappear! No way. Every year I end up throwing up my hands in despair. There seems to be no option other than to send these majorly mismatched socks, willingly, to be with Jesus.
And socks are not cheap. It’s a little like going to the dentist, no one goes buys socks because they want them – they buy them because they need them. I’ve rarely seen a coupon for socks, instead I see a “Buy 3 get one free….” Great. Spend $51.00 for three packs of men’s crew socks so I can get one free? No thanks, I’ll just head over to jewelry and see what $51.00 can buy there!
So it’s a Saturday morning, and I’m organizing and sending those socks off. They’ve had a good, though sometimes short, life. RIP little ones!
What do you do with socks with no mates? How have you solved this problem? My friend Pari used the sock dilemma as inspiration for a poem. You can find it here: Lost Socks by Pari Ali. I eagerly await your solutions!
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- The Sock Jail (capewearingmom.com)
Marilyn R. Gardner 
Haven’t you noticed that there’s an escape conspiracy? The socks you find stuck against the side of the laundry tub didn’t get through the holes before the wash ended. They’ll try again next time.
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We always talk about the black hole where these socks disappear into. I always have a hard time throwing the “Left Behind” out, but eventually (usually when I or someone in the family is moving) I get the courage to give the big toss. I think I am afraid that just as the garbage truck goes rattling down the road that I will discover the black hole where those socks are hiding.
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That’s exactly what I do…I wait…and wait…with hope that each laundry day another pair will surface. But when do we stop hoping??! I do have to admit that there are times when, the very day after I send all my socks to Jesus, a couple surface and I am duly rebuked.
By the way – I loved your “Missing Piece” poem. Thank you.
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I too, wear mismatched socks if they are in good shape. If not, they go to the rag tub out in our storage building for FD to use as shop rags. Sometimes I use the softer, cotton socks for lining a little box for the orphaned birds or small mammals that we rehabilitate. Nothing goes to waste… it can always be repurposed!
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Love this! I’m picturing the lined boxes for the orphaned! That’s why I need your perspective! Thank you
Marilyn Gardner Sent from my iPhone
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That lonely sock without a mate can fulfill a useful purpose before moving to the
“great beyond”. It should be cotton, of course, to become a quick dustcloth before happily leaving this world! But, on the other hand, who dusts these days?
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Haha! Good question! Who does dust?! But I still think there comes that day when they add up to the point that they have to go to the “Great Beyond!” Thanks for the dusting suggestion :)
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Our Bronwynn wears mismatched socks all the time and with no regrets.
I have a basket where the lonely socks wait. Some of them eventually find their mates, others remain lonely for keeps. It’s a mystery. Why must some live alone? Why do some find the love of their lives? Bronwynn’s ministry to the lonely, in bringing them together, is the answer. As the psalmist says, God places the lonely in families. Here’s to mismatched love, opposites- attract socks!
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Your Bronwynn is our Annie! That’s exactly what she would do and with great flair. She has gone on to develop her own style that concedes to no one. I love it.
Marilyn Gardner Sent from my iPhone
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I never wear matching socks, and I enjoy the diversity. :)
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Having 5 kids that’s exactly what my kids had to do for a long time! Keeps life exciting. When I googled images of mismatched socks it was pretty amazing – and the diversity was awesome! Thanks for stopping by!
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