Homecoming and Chrysanthemums
I have to admit that homecoming to me conjures images of
warm sweaters, thick lap blankets, and warm boots. Growing up in Alaska, we didn’t do ‘Friday
Night Lights’ the way they do it Texas.
And a mum to me was always short for Chrysanthemum…a pretty
yet humble flower but when compared to roses and lilacs and other complex
flowers that are able to combine delicate beauty with intoxicating scents, it
comes up lacking. A ‘mum’ is sort of
boring—simplistic, it reminds me of a daisy and its’ fragrance fleeting and
only gratifying to the sniffer that seeks and concentrates to discern its’
aroma. But in the hands of a Texan school
student, a mum is a gigantic display that in no way resembles that from which
the term originates.
Where the Mum of traditional homecoming is overly large and ostentatious,
the dress that traditionally accompanies it is as diminutive as the actual
flower. Homecoming signals the shortest
dresses wearable--prom dresses surpass in surplus the length of dress required. Christian girls that manage every aspect of
their life in a Christ-like fashion toss their values to the wind and wear a
dress to this event that barely covers their behind. Is this a Texas thing or a southern tradition? I am not sure.
Texas girls, Southern girls, Moms and Dads—don’t cave to
the homecoming culture that calls for your Godly and gorgeous daughter to clad
herself in a skirt that barely covers her rear.
She is so much more than the length of her skirt! Wear a dress that says: I don’t need to show
you everything about me to be valuable.
Wear a dress that says “Jesus could sit right next to me tonight and He
would say I am stunning!” Wear a dress
that says, I don’t have to be sexy at 14 to have self-worth because my value
comes from One who sees my heart and soul.
Growing up in Alaska, I may not understand the Texan culture
of short homecoming dresses. As a
homeschool mom, I may not see the need for a mum to be more lengthy than the
skirt of its bearer. But as an observer
from the outside, you sweet girl are so much more than the length of your
skirt. Stand up and stand out. When you decide how you dress, be a rose or a
lilac—beauty with depth, fragrance, and confidence that comes from within. The Mum is simple and its fragrance is
fleeting, don’t settle for the bare minimum.
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