“Bunion Season”It’s that time of year again. No, I am not talking about bikini season. I’m talking about bunion season.I did not even know I had a bunion until fairly recently and now, every time I start wearing sandals again, I am reminded that I do. I imagine it was growing on the sly for years before my husband, Peter, brought it to my attention.“You have a bunion,” he said.“I do not!” I immediately answered—because I had no idea what it was.“Yes, you do. Right there, on your foot.”“That’s not a bunion. It’s always been like that… I think.”“No, that’s a bunion. That’s what they look like.”I had heard the word “bunion” before, but had no idea what it was. For some reason, I associated it with old women in cottages who raised sheep and made cheese. I googled it and learned it was nothing nearly so romantic.As I read up on bunions, I learned they were very unlikely to afflict a young person. Since, on most days, I still regard myself as a relatively young person, this was more than a little deflating.“How did this happen?” I asked, shocked to learn that I had joined the ranks of the little old cheese-making women.“It just happens when you get older,” Peter informed me. Peter is older than I am and, occasionally, he lords this over me, as if there is a wealth of information about getting older he is withholding for my own good.I was not at all pleased about this bunion. I asked the doctor about it at my next appointment. She was completely unimpressed.“Does it hurt?” she asked.“Well… no.”“Then I wouldn’t worry about it.”This seemed to me a highly unsatisfactory response. If young people got bunions, I have to believe they would be taken a lot more seriously. Doctors would say, “We must find a treatment for this bunion or this young person’s foot will never fit properly in their sandal! They might experience discomfort and embarrassment and never find a mate!”By my age, no one cares. The doctor shrugged. From this, I gathered that she did not think I would live long enough for my bunion to become a genuine problem worthy of medical attention.I told my sister that I had a bunion, wondering if she had one as well. She is younger than I am. To my slight disappointment, I learned she does not. Yet. But ...
