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The Japanese Concept That Inspired Me to Restore My Busted Old Sneakers
‘Mottainai’ helps me to see value in the lackluster
My sneakers had holes on the bottom of the soles, the white leather had turned the color of ash, and the laces were stained from the rusted eyelets. I put them in a plastic shopping bag and was ready to toss them in the outdoor garbage can when my mom stopped me in the doorway.
“Kaki-chan! That’s so mottainai.”
In Japanese, mottainai means wasteful, something I learned after I moved from New York to Tokyo at age 12. But I didn’t think I was being wasteful — I had worn these sneakers daily for about two years and they were so tattered that my heels would get wet every time it rained. I had just received a paycheck from my part-time job and decided I deserved better.
My mom waved me off. “Fine, you can throw them out if you want, but there’s still life in them.”
I left the plastic bag by the doorstep and told myself I would take them out tomorrow when I wasn’t under her scrutiny.
