What Kind of Clothing?

Clothing seemed (seamed?) to be the theme of this past weekend. 

Kati's collection of stripes ~ photo by Kati 

On Friday afternoon, I steeled myself for an afternoon of dress shopping with Bekah (nearly 16). She is not the stereotypical angst-filled teenage girl, but she is quite particular about her clothes. 

Bekah is my hardest girl to please in the realm of fashion. Something is either too long or too short or low under the arms or not the right shade or too frilly or too boxy or too fill-in-the-blank. She can't even please herself! She'll buy something and then it will languish away in her closet until she finally decides that she really doesn't like it after all. 

Even as a tiny girl, she felt strongly about what she wore. For many years, she only wore dresses or skirts. Even to bed. Nightgowns only. Never pajamas because they were pants. She would have a complete meltdown if I insisted she wear pants on a frigid day . . . as in sobbing her heart out. I finally wised up and bought her leggings to wear under her dresses. No more tears. (For either of us.)

So the thought of dress shopping with Bek brings a bit of angst to my own heart.  

But she needs a purple dress, solid or print, for her spring concert in May. So on Friday afternoon, we set out together, cheerful attitudes and everything, to find The Dress.

Fourteen stores later (not kidding), we had no purple dress.

This time, it was not Bekah's fashion sense that was the hindrance. It is the fact that "purple is not in our spring color palette this year." What?! Who decided that? Do all the stores have the same decision-makers?

In the course of the afternoon, she did find two lavender dresses and tried them on. Both {ahem} needed more fabric. (I will just insert here that I am so thankful that Bek has a sense of modesty. Even though we don't always agree on fashion styles, we have no disagreements about the appropriateness of a garment.)

We gave it a heroic try.

That evening, we came home and ordered a lovely dress online. Now we pray that it arrives at the beginning of the estimated delivery range and not at the end. (The last day of the estimated range is the day of the concert. Yikes!)

On Saturday (while Ron was working on the library book shelves . . . yay!), Kati, Bekah, and I all cleaned out our closets. Out came clothes that don't fit. Out came clothes that are out of style. Out came clothes that are worn or faded. Out came clothes that have been hanging there for a year or two but never worn . . . you know, those things that you like, but never feel good in, so you always choose something else? (In Bekah's case, out came clothes with tags still attached!)

Then Kati and Bekah decided to go to a local consignment shop as well as a new store at the mall to search for a few missing pieces in their wardrobes.

At the end of the day, there were piles of things to share with family, some bags to donate, and a few things in the trash. Our closets were tidier and were filled with clothes that we actually wear and love. Very satisfying.

On Sunday, clothes sorting was a part of the afternoon's activities. Kristin's girls' clothes are stored in our attic. She had gotten some of the boxes down earlier in the week and the two younger girls had already done the spring clothing switch. So those boxes returned to the attic and those in Maddie's size came down, along with another box that may have blue dresses which the younger choir girls need for the spring concert. (No blue dresses in the box.) The piles from the closets were looked through and both families took some.

If you didn't follow that, no worries. I am not even sure that I followed it all myself!
I said all of that to show you how much time and effort this weekend went into the simple business of clothing our bodies.


But then I consider these words and it is all put into perspective. 

Do not let your adornment be merely outward arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. (I Peter 3:3, 4)

Yes, clothing our bodies is necessary and good. It is even a means of expressing our creativity and our individual style. But that's not the most important adornment, even if it is stylish or beautiful or costly, because that is outward.

True beauty . . . that is inward.

It is the hidden person of the heart.

It is a gentle and quiet spirit.

And it is precious in the sight of God.