"Can I use a pillowcase? And, well, alter it?" Aurelle seemed tentative about my response.
"Sure. What's it for?"
"The club banquet is Saturday and the dress code is ABC. Anything but clothes."
A few years ago her sister wowed us at a family wedding by wearing a black shift with a silver belt. She told us on the sly that it was a pillowcase. She looked smashing.
I laughed at the memory. Aurelle rummaged through the linen closet hunting for one of those extra long cases. She found a maroon one. A few minutes with a seam ripper was all it took. Matched with short brown boots and a yard of twine she was ready.
Hope had more work to do. She had designs on a blue Ikea bag. She sewed a skirt and top with yellow ties in the back. The straps did triple duty around her neck, in her hair, and on her sandals.
It was fun to observe while they stepped outside the box of what they normally wear. Clothes. The freedom to explore duct tape, trash bags, and cardboard opened up new ways to define coverage.
I started playing too. Not with plastic and rope, but the words. Anything But.
What would happen if I challenged myself to create fresh responses to familiar scenarios?
When someone makes a life choice different than me I can embrace ABC. Anything But Criticism.
Curiosity. Neutrality. Gratitude that I have my own free will. Trust that God is providing for them. Serenity about things I cannot change.
We cloak ourselves every day. It is in everyone's best interest that I keep my stretch marks and wrinkles under wraps. My propensity for complaints is better left out of sight too.
