I see things you don’t. You might not look at the bottom of your feet. I do.

It’s real important to care for your feet. For instance, most all of us have been guilty of it — I’ve been guilty of it: drip-dry. You can’t do that. Sometimes you’ll wake up and wonder, Why do I have a fungus? Why is my toenail yellow? It’s because you don’t dry your feet. Fungus grows and lives in the dark dampness between your toes. If your feet are wet and you put them in socks, stockings or shoes, you just set yourself up for fungus.

I’ve been called a healer. I can tell a lot about you through your feet. I can tell when your shoes don’t fit. I can tell what you need to change. I can look at your toenails and tell if you have some kind of health problem. I have a foot-book collection to refer back to when necessary.

When I started doing this I saw feet in my sleep. I have a scrapbook of all the articles and pictures I’ve collected. I have foot poems and foot songs. I’d like to write a book someday.

My favorite pieces are the wooden ones where the big toe points up. I’ve been trying to find the history on them. I carry one in my purse and ask people all the time, “Have you seen this? Do you know where it came from?” I’ve been told they are pipe holders or ashtrays. But because they’re wood, I find that hard to believe.

[Points to painting] This is my daughter’s little foot, along with my two brothers’ and my sister’s feet. My brother did this when my daughter was 2 years old. My mom had it on her wall. One day she finally took it down. By this time I was really into feet, so she gave it to me. It’s a prize.

Now that I have such an extensive collection, I want others to see it. I would like to have a foot museum. I never thought I’d end up with a foot collection I really love. I come in this room, close the doors, and it’s meditation, like a breath of fresh air. It’s always a foot with me.

— As told to Brandon Walters;

Photographed by Stephen Salpukas.