Laces as Spiritual Practice: My Ritual with Combat Boots

A ritual of the mundane...

For me, there’s magic in my combat boots. To me, they represent strength, versatility, frugality, and a connection to my marginalized ancestors (especially as a queer person)—a visible representation of resistance, self-expression, and history.

Because of this, I basically live in combat boots.

I own two pairs of lace-up combat boots, and as the adjective implies, both require lacing up every time I wear them.

Pole fitness stiletto combat boots and thrifted Docs

The first pair are seven-inch pole fitness boots that allow me to dance with power, stability, and finesse.

The other ones are Docs I thrifted (after three years of searching for a secondhand pair).

Whether I’m lacing up my Docs or my pole heels, I love the lacing process because it feels like prayer—like spellwork, like visualization, like meditation, like poetry. There’s so much intention and centering that goes on when I take that moment before rushing out the door. The very process of lacing up interrupts the capitalist demand for hurry. And as I lace, I am connected to the brave punks and dancers before me.

In that moment of self-care—of protection and self-expression for the day ahead—I feel a connection to divine¹ love/community (how I define spirituality²). I feel strengthened and upheld to go about my day in resistance to fascism and all forms of oppression. In my case, most specifically, I resist various forms of christofascism, purity culture, moral panics, and ableism.

Doing the work of unlearning, doing the work of interrupting, doing the work of direct action, doing the work of building community, doing the work of dreaming of a more just world.

As I lace up my boots, may I love in deed and truth.

May I love my neighbor and myself.

May I rest and find courage in the Love that holds up the universe.

May I find that Love not only in the grand moments but in the mundane ones.

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And I wish the same for you, dear readers.

And so, I want to know, what rituals of the mundane empower you in love? Let me know in the comments.

In Wonder,

Kandi Zeller (she/her)

KandiZeller.com

1. My understanding of how God expresses Godself is expansive. Basically, I conceive of spirituality as our experience with divine love and connection. But even that feels a little religious-y. Put another way, I believe spirituality is the place where we as individuals and communities connect with the “force of love that holds up the universe” (in words sometimes attributed to Julian of Norwich), whether we conceive of that love as divine or as the love shared between fellow humans/other creatures or some combination of both loves. It is the place within our bodies and our communities where we find love and connection with all who have come before and who will come after.

2. When I describe or experience any tool/practices as spiritual, I want to acknowledge that that is not everyone’s experience. Any practice/tool I share is meant for all, regardless of spiritual label (or lack of label) or whether you experience these tools as spiritual or as some other adjective(s). Labels, while helpful in describing our experiences, are ultimately insufficient, so I want to hold space for that tension here.