Young Dutch learned a lot from his father. His dad was a smooth talking salesman who loved selling shoes more than anything else. In fact, he liked it so much that he dreamed of owning his own shoe store.

    Dutch and his brother John were born above the store where their dad worked. When Dutch entered fifth grade, his father's dream was on its way to becoming reality. Unfortunately, due to the fall of the stock market, "The Fashion Boot" failed to open.

    Shoes continued to play a big role in Dutch's life. He chuckled every time he remembered the time his aunt took him to the shoemaker to get a new pair made.

    The shoemaker measured his foot made some notes in his pad and then asked,"Do you want square toed shoes or round toed?" Dutch couldn"t make up his mind so he hem-hawed. The shoemaker grew impatient and said, "That's all right, see me in a couple of days then you can let me what you want and I'll make them for you."

    The next time the shoemaker saw young Dutch he asked, "Do you want square toed shoes or round toed?" 

    Once again, Dutch could not decide. He shuffled his feet, gazed into the distance and said, "I don't know."

     The shoemaker smiled and nodded his head, “See me in a couple days -- your shoes will be ready."

     When Dutch went to the shop to pick up, his shoes and he was surprised to find that one shoe had a round toe and the other a square toe.

     That day Dutch learned the importance of making up his mind. It was a very valuable lesson that served him well as President of the United States. Throughout his life, Ronald Reagan continued to enjoy the benefits of custom footwear and sound judgment.

For more information on Ronald Reagan check into New Yorker for an article by Edmund Morris http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/06/28/040628fa_fact1Â