Today was day 1 of month 2. Once I managed to make the decision about what to put on this morning it went quite well, although I did have to wonder about my choices as the day progressed.
7 articles of clothing for an entire month... Do you have any idea how hard it was to narrow it down to 7 articles of clothing? My life isn't conducive to that size of wardrobe. I can, in a single day's time, spend hours working in the dirt, change to run errands, and then clean up to attend a reception with my husband. Throw in a workout somewhere in there and I could see multiple wardrobe changes in just one 24 hour period. Of course, I could just wash everything at the end of every day, right? The problem with that is that there's simply no way to make 7 pieces of clothing create 4 outfits with shoe changes and differing functions. So... I had to make choices on what I would be most focused on throughout this month and provide clothing for those particular activities.
The Council has decided to follow Jen's example and count 2 pairs of shoes as 1 article (yes, I know... this month we're really doing '8'...). For me, my boots and simple black flats were the obvious choices, although I desperately wanted tennis shoes as well. That's #1. My other 6 are as follows.
- Skinny Jeans... the pair that already has a slight stain and I really won't care if I stain them further
- Button-Up... purple plaid, with easy to roll up long sleeves and able to be worn tucked in or out
- Castle Ranch T... my favorite, most comfortable top
- Athletic Shorts... lightweight, comfortable, and needed for working out, relaxing, and playing volleyball
- Dress... not yet found! Looking for a lightweight but long, easy to dress up or down dress
- Black Peacoat... I hope it's never so cold I have to wear it to work in, but if one must be ruined it's this one
As this month drew close I decided I should take an account of my current clothing situation. If the purpose of '7' is to learn - to learn about the poor, to learn about myself, and to learn about and develop the connection between us - I needed to know where I stood and how we compare. My findings were... embarrassing. I'd really rather not, but I promised myself and my Council that the numbers would be made public. Everything in my closet and dresser, with the exception of socks and underwear, was counted. Everything from pants to belts, scarves to outerwear, even those formal gowns I never wear; it all went into the final tally.
331. Thus is the number of my closet. If you figure in that I spent around $5 per item that means I have over $1500 tied up in my clothing. That might seem like I'm low balling it to make myself feel better, but I promise you, that really IS about what I tend to spend on my clothes. I'm the kind of person who will put something I like back on the rack at Goodwill because it's not the half-off color of the week. BUT... shoes are in that count as well, and I tend to spend around $10-$15 on shoes. Yes, that's about 80% off of regularly priced shoes... I absolutely love RedDot Sales at the Shoe Dept! BUT again, I know that my two pairs of cowboy boots were significantly more expensive than anything else in my closet, and gowns are a bit pricier as well. All things considered, I'm estimating that there sits within my closet somewhere between $1750 and $2000. I'll say it again... that's down right embarrassing.
Now, I know that some of you really want to reach through your computer screens and give me an encouraging pat on the back and tell me that it's not that bad. Maybe you think it's silly of me to feel embarrassed about my closet when you know there are closets worth many times more. But see, that's the problem with comparison... I could very easily choose to compare my closet to the first lady's closet and feel fully justified in going on a shopping spree. I could choose to compare it to a similar closet and not deal with feelings either of deprivation or embarrassment. Or I could do as I am doing now.
I choose to compare my closet with those who don't even have one at all, much less have one full of clothes. That choice isn't based on some strange desire to try and evoke feelings of guilt. In fact, I believe that 'there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus'. Feelings of guilt and shame are feelings to be fought with the truth of God's grace whenever they raise their ugly heads! No, my choice to set my closet next to an emptier one is for no other reason than to spur me into action and restrain my hand from grasping after more. I can't really think of any other reason to go count your clothes, sum up an estimate, and put it out there for the world to see... It's certainly not an exercise to be labeled 'just-for-fun'. :)
This month is going to be interesting, for sure! I have some ideas of what I will deal with throughout the next 4 weeks, but I'm looking forward to see what unexpected issues arise as well. The Council is meeting tomorrow night to discuss the details and display our choices while we enjoy (read, gorge ourselves on!) Mexican food. I'm bringing guacamole... just because I actually do still love avocados. Surprise surprise! It will be good to see them all again, laugh over last month's stories and this month's question marks, and argue over the nitty-gritty details of what exactly constitutes as an 'article of clothing'. ;) I am so grateful for these ladies... doing this alone would have been such a different story!
No comments:
Post a Comment