I have a confession to make. I spent a solid hour (give or take) making fun of and/or ridiculing the dresses of the latest local homecoming dance. That wasn't nice. Let me explain. I was the youth director at my husband's church a little while ago and am friends with several of the "kids" on facebook. Some photo albums tagging some of our youth came up and to say it bluntly- I was shocked like a 50s housewife looking at porn. I mean- wow. I will add a disclaimer that "my" girls were for the most part tastefully dressed (some in dresses that were too short for my taste, but I hate my knees- so that's a bit harsh).
What the hell are people letting their daughters wear? Wait- let me be even more cliche- WHY did they let her go out dressed like that? Apparently the new style is skin-tight, SHORT, and let's make it strapless too. Because I want to see BOTH ends fall out. Really?! I know, I just turned thirty, maybe I'm showing my age. But I PROMISE you that if some of these girls even so much attempted to pick up a penny or stretch- their world was going to be visible.
On a more serious note- this is bad. Really bad. Worse than I thought. These girls were not only dressed as 25 year olds, they were dressed as 25 year old prostitutes. And I'm not kidding or exaggerating. What concerns me is that it wasn't a few girls who were able to slip past Mom and Dad (or had oblivious guardians who thought this was appropriate)- this wasn't even THAT girl who was just too oblivious to realize that Paris Hilton doesn't translate. No- the MAJORITY were dressed like this. Even the ones with more modest tops (a sleeve, for example)- still had the super short dress going on. This concerns me for the women who thought their daughter should or could wear these dresses. It concerns me for the girls who wanted to. And it concerns me for the poor ones who refused to because you just KNOW they aren't cool. There was such an overwhelming majority of these dresses that it seemed oppressive for any girl to make a stand against it. Some kids made their way around it- and I applaud them. One of the girls I knew wore a dress that was similarly styled but a good 3 inches longer than most- not noticeably long- but hey- it covered her butt.
I was talking to a Mom of one of these girls whose daughter was beautifully and not prostitutely dressed- and she talked about how it was almost impossible to find clothing that wasn't like this for her daughter. If her daughter wants to wear shorts- her options are capris, bermuda pants or up-your-butt shorts. What is wrong with this picture?
Ultimately women are still not doing well in terms of general equality and respect. (Obviously) The boys- what were they wearing? Coat and tie. I thanked God I had boys and then promised God I would teach them to respect women.
How do you teach boys to respect women? I have the love and respect of my husband and I don't dress like a tramp- that's a start. But there will be girls who do dress and act his way- and many of them will do it because they have been taught from day one that to be attractive is A #1 how to be loved. I read an article recently that highlighted how we innocently start this teaching to the littlest one. You see a little girl and what do you say? Oh, how beautiful you are in your little dress! A boy we may call handsome, or we call them big and boyish.
God, give us grace, give us wisdom, guide us and help us. And please don't let my sons date girls who dress like prostitutes. Because then I'm going to have to give that girl a lecture. Amen.
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