It’s difficult to say if my first pair of Doc Martens boots were a Christmas present or a birthday present, since both fall on 25 December. Ten years later, I can’t remember if I opened them in the morning (which would make it Christmas, as far as I’m concerned), or the afternoon (which would make it my birthday). What I do know is I had just turned 17, they were luminous blue, and I loved them with all my teenage heart.
What’s strange is that over the next few years I barely wore them. Each term I devotedly ferried them up to university and then let them gather dust as I tried to fit in with the more conventional going-out attire of my peers. This, unfortunately for me, meant bodycon dresses and high heels – not an easy ensemble to pull off while sitting in a wheelchair.
