There is a simplicity in this prayer. Not that I'm eating bread these days. But I'm reminded of when the One who is the Bread of Life said "Why do you worry about your clothes, about what you will wear? Does not your Father in heaven know...?"
My friend lisa is exploring some clothing related issues on her blog. To sum it up: Wearing and seeking out Fair Trade Clothing as a way of living justly in this world. One more drop in the bucket of the miriad of things that we do and buy in this world. Recognizing the impact that our choices make on others...even our neighbors in places we never give a thought to-like India. (I'm developing a fascinatio with Bollywood movies, but that's beside the point. I find that the Tamil language is very lyrical and beautiful, even when one does not understand one iota of it...but I digress...)
So, as a jumping off point from that interesting set of posts and comments, I've been wondering: what would a minimalist wardrobe look like, for me? I have a closet stuffed full of dorky clothes. But many of them are getting worn out. What if I don't seek actively to replace the ones that are starting to get holes in them? What if I just see how low I can go? What if I set aside some of my stuff and see how little I can functionally get away with wearing on a regular basis?
For instance: I have this one sundress that is loose and flowy and forgiving and it feels like a night gown. Whenver it is clean, I find myself reaching for that particular dress to wear with my sandals. In fact, I like it so much, I often check for food spillage, and do the armpit sniff test and go European by wearing it (shock!) two days in a row before sending it through the wash again.
Now, I know that here in heat-and-humidity-land, that is not always feasible. But sometimes, perhaps it is.
I just want to challenge my thinking on how many clothes I think I need. And I want to challenge my thinking on acquisitiveness...just for the sake thereof.
Sigh...but every once in a while, along comes something like that April Cornell dress from the thrift store that seems like such a FIND...like a love note from God Himself who cares about the lilies of the fields and promises to take care of our NEEDS. And he does it in such lovely ways, so much of the time.
So, I do want to challenge myself...but I also want to have that anticipation: What will God provide? To me, often shopping at the thrift store is like that: I actually go and pray about the things we need, and often I find really cool stuff that is actually answered prayers.
I don't want to own too much, though. It's so hard to find the right balance.
My friend lisa is exploring some clothing related issues on her blog. To sum it up: Wearing and seeking out Fair Trade Clothing as a way of living justly in this world. One more drop in the bucket of the miriad of things that we do and buy in this world. Recognizing the impact that our choices make on others...even our neighbors in places we never give a thought to-like India. (I'm developing a fascinatio with Bollywood movies, but that's beside the point. I find that the Tamil language is very lyrical and beautiful, even when one does not understand one iota of it...but I digress...)
So, as a jumping off point from that interesting set of posts and comments, I've been wondering: what would a minimalist wardrobe look like, for me? I have a closet stuffed full of dorky clothes. But many of them are getting worn out. What if I don't seek actively to replace the ones that are starting to get holes in them? What if I just see how low I can go? What if I set aside some of my stuff and see how little I can functionally get away with wearing on a regular basis?
For instance: I have this one sundress that is loose and flowy and forgiving and it feels like a night gown. Whenver it is clean, I find myself reaching for that particular dress to wear with my sandals. In fact, I like it so much, I often check for food spillage, and do the armpit sniff test and go European by wearing it (shock!) two days in a row before sending it through the wash again.
Now, I know that here in heat-and-humidity-land, that is not always feasible. But sometimes, perhaps it is.
I just want to challenge my thinking on how many clothes I think I need. And I want to challenge my thinking on acquisitiveness...just for the sake thereof.
Sigh...but every once in a while, along comes something like that April Cornell dress from the thrift store that seems like such a FIND...like a love note from God Himself who cares about the lilies of the fields and promises to take care of our NEEDS. And he does it in such lovely ways, so much of the time.
So, I do want to challenge myself...but I also want to have that anticipation: What will God provide? To me, often shopping at the thrift store is like that: I actually go and pray about the things we need, and often I find really cool stuff that is actually answered prayers.
I don't want to own too much, though. It's so hard to find the right balance.
Comments
I do the same for the boys; their stuff gets handed down once, and then goes to a family with two smaller-size boys. Because they're both husky size, and I'm a plus, thrift stores rarely work for us (sigh). But I love Lands' End Outlet (like $25 boys pants for $15...given that they're being worn for a total of six years...well, you do the math).
DH is left to fend for himself :-)
YMMV, of course.