In these shoes

There was a boy who wanted badly a pair of shoes that he liked. It was a pair of branded white leather sneakers, limited edition, which would set him back by a cool $160 dollars. The boy badly wanted that pair of sneakers, so much so he wouldn't even entertain the thought of buying another pair of shoes. But the problem was, he had a measly $50 in his savings, and his parents were very unwilling to finance him.
The boy was normally a meek and quiet person, who in group situations would just go along with the flow and disliked to speak to strangers. But despite this, his desire to want that pair of shoes was so great, that he managed to summon up the courage to speak to the manager of the store to ask him to hold that pair of shoes for him until he had enough money to buy it.
The manager initially didn't want to do so, as it was a limited edition and he knew that there were many people who had the ability to buy it and it was a bestseller. But he was swayed by the boy's earnest pleas and decided to hold the shoes for 2 weeks, and asked the boy to have the money by then.
The boy, buoyed by his success at being able to persuade the manager, came up with a plan to raise the $110 difference. He next approached his uncle, who ran a shop, and asked for a loan. His uncle agreed, on the condition he would pay it off by tending to his shop for him. Although he loathed the idea of having to talk to strangers, he agreed as he badly wanted those shoes.
The boy took the money and bought the shoes. Everyday he tended to his uncle's shop from 7 to 10 pm for a month to pay off his loan.
Slowly, the boy changed. Wearing those shoes, he felt confident and assured. He managed to muster up the courage to speak to the girl he sees every morning at the bus stop and became friends with her. As it turned out, she noticed him too, but was too shy to speak to him.
The boy also spoke more in class, and surprised everyone with his measured and well thought out comments. His teachers who were worried about his constant silence, were relieved. His classmates who thought he was a weirdo for not talking much, involved him in their conversations and activities now.
The boy as a a result, became more confident, more assured of himself, spoke up more and became a good friend to many and a good boyfriend to the girl at the bus stop. He went on to be very successful in his life.
When asked how this change came about 10 years, he said, in seriousness, "It was all due to this pair of shoes." And he would hold up that same pair he bought 10 years ago, now old and worn, but still full of significance to him.