Aprons and High Heels

I learned a couple of things this morning while catching a few minutes of the Today Show...

1) This is National Women's History Month! (Seems like I should have already known that being a woman and all).
2) In 1968, during a Miss America Pageant protest, radical feminists threw aprons and high heels into a 'freedom trash can'. (Why????)

I am all for women having equal rights and pursuing the career of their choice, but really - what were they thinking?! Anyone who knows me, knows that I have a bit of a thing for aprons, but I'm going to start my way at the bottom of this historic protest and work my way up!

High heels tossed into a 'freedom trash can"! Hum...OK, I'll start by being totally honest with you all. There are times that my toes have wanted to be freed from a pair of heels and I do tend to spend more time in my Nike's these days, but I would never think of trashing my high heels for a plethora of reasons. Like, high heels are just way too cute! - so many styles and colors, so little time and money. And how about the fact that they make my feet look smaller and my legs look longer - both an excellent thing! Last on my high heel short list - no matter what the scale says, my feet slide right into them...the same can not be said of my jeans. =]

Sister~Friend, I don't know about you, but I think we can pursue our goals and dreams in fun, uniquely feminine footwear, if we want to! (Any Amen's out there?)

What do you think of when you see an apron?...your mom, grandma or and episode of I Love Lucy? Radical women's libbers defined the apron as 'an uniform of oppression'. I see an apron as a universal symbol for women that crosses the lines of culture, generation and socio-economic status. I see an article of clothing that reminds me that women have been both hard working and nurturing for generation after generation. In different eras of our society, aprons have been more than an utilitarian garment. They became an artists canvas of sorts, on which women told stories and reflected their personalities and creativity. Another plus for aprons...the Bible says that love covers a multitude of sin - without being sacrilegious, aprons do too...the sin of too much chocolate and too few laps around the neighborhood with the family dog! =]

All joking aside, as visually impactful as tossing high heels and aprons into a trash can may have been, the action did not, in and of itself, provide the freedom that women were and may yet be seeking.

Only God can do that. Centuries before women stood up for equality, the Lord declared us equal.
"You are all (children) of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:26-28

In God's eyes we were all created equal regardless of our nationality or gender. Regardless of the fact that some of us prefer jeans and tennis shoes while others don perky aprons and strappy heels.

The only fashion choice of preference is the one mentioned in the verse above. We must clothe ourselves in faith in Christ Jesus. When we do, we are God's children - heirs of all that He promises. And He promises freedom - true freedom, (see Matthew 8:36), and frankly, who doesn't want to walk around in that!

So girls, let's celebrate being women in what's left of this Women's History Month. Let's celebrate that God has created each of us uniquely and with a purpose. Let celebrate that while our pay scale may not always be equal with that of men, God sees us as equals in His sight - no one gender having importance over another. And let's celebrate the fact that in Jesus we can be truly free whether we choose to keep our aprons and heels or not!