“Skirt. Skirt. Skirt. UGH SKIRT.”
This has been my mantra for the past week. I took on the skirt challenge. And I kind of hate it. Not in a bad way, mind you. Just in a I-don’t-want-to-be-“forced”-to-wear-a-skirt-every-day kind of way. Granted, I am the one forcing myself to wear one, so I can’t really get that mad about it. And it’s definitely been challenging in a good way. But still. Skirt. Skirt. Skirt. Skirt. Errrrrday.
Ok. So here’s the deal. I like wearing skirts and dresses. I think they are great. I think they are pretty and fun. But I like them in the late spring and summertime. I wear them practically all day everyday in the summer. But now? When there is still snow? Oh. Oh no. But this is where I have decided the sacrifice lies – in wearing them despite not wanting to. Even to bed (in the form of a nightgown, rather than my usual pj pants). And even sledding.
Oh yes, I went sledding. In a skirt. At midnight. In Steubenville. As a matter of fact, we didn’t actually even have sleds. We used cookie sheets. And I wiped out several times. My skirt actually ended up tucked into my sweatpants (I cheated and wore sweatpants underneath because I didn’t have snow pants) and my friend who was with me started cracking up and said “Oh my gosh Ashley, I forgot you were wearing a dress! It’s probably ruined!” To which I responded “Well, at least this will be an interesting blog.”
 |
| (This was basically me. Only with a skirt on.) |
The dress was ok. And we had an absolute
blast sledding! But it definitely put things in a different perspective for me.
It made me realize how hard it is to be modest and do crazy things while
wearing a skirt. There is a reason women wanted to wear pants. So they could do
crazy things. (And relax in sweats. Ladies, I miss my sweats.)
What I like about this challenge is that
I find dresses and skirts to be distinctly feminine. I like them because they
are flowy and soft and pretty. They are the epitome of feminine dress (unless
you are a man who wears a kilt or cassock, in which case… we will have to make
an exception). There is just something about wearing a skirt that I love. I
always feel prettier in one. And I think it’s because dresses are so unique to
specifically (mostly) women, that wearing one really makes me feel like a girl.
Pants are so practical. Oh, I believe that they can most definitely be made
feminine. But I truly think that wearing a dress just brings out the lady in
me. It’s a very positive thing. Even if I currently despise wearing one every
day in the cold winter weather.
But this will be good for me. This Lent
I am trying to truly discover my own femininity by becoming the “master of my
own mystery” (through my own personal Lenten prayers and penances), and I am
100% positive that this challenge is going to help me in this journey as well.
We have yet to see how. It’s only been a week, so there really isn’t much to
report. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you posted on my many adventures in skirt land.
Until next week!
Through Our Lovely Lady,
Ashley
Ashley
Hi Ashley
ReplyDeleteI loved to read this, as I too changed to skirts only more than 8 years ago. At first it was a really difficult challenge as I had just assumed that every physical activity had to be done in pants, but over time you realise this is just not true. Many millions of ladies before me survived perfectly well without any pants at all, and they lived in far more difficult times than now, so I look in the mirror each day and feel that in my own way I have regained what it is to be female. I do get some strange looks when doing 'mucky jobs' (when gardening for instance) but providing you keep skirts or dresses for such work in exactly the same way as you would have kept overalls, then there is no real probelms at all. Do you intend to carry on avoiding pants?
Saby
Hi Saby,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply to the post! I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I'm so glad to hear that your own skirt challenge changed your perspectives too! I'm hoping that this will truly help me to grow in understanding a realm of femininity I find myself to be all too unfamiliar with. Like I said, I love skirts, but wintertime is really difficult to wear them in, and I like adventures that require (or it's at least easier) one to wear pants entirely too much to give them up altogether. :)But it's only been two weeks, so who knows how I will feel at Easter time? :) To be perfectly honest though, I'll more than likely go back to my old ways of mixing up the skirts and pants. I just like clothes... probably too much! haha
God bless you,
Ashley