India, Aug. 30 -- What people see as shoes outside the door, I see as an x-ray of personality.

Some families have footwear lined up beside the door in a neat row, like soldiers mid-drill. Others have shoes sprawled across the corridor, like a merry bunch that has had too much to drink. No cabinet ever seems to hold them all. Even the most respectable shoe rack stands there bashfully, tenants spilling out into the passage.

In my home, scattered shoes make me twitchy. As for visitors who walk in with footwear on, that's enough to move me into Cranky mode. Most Indians don't need to be asked. We shed shoes at the threshold almost instinctively, as a sign of respect for the line that separates outside and inside.

Family lore has it my cous...