nothing to wear?

I manged an amazing feat this morning. I scrubbed down the lawn furniture with bleach water and did not bleach one bit of the clothing that was terribly inappropriate for the job. Yes, I'm aware I should not have been wearing it.

That I had a good excuse means nothing, really. Tell that to child #2, who is constantly being stopped at the door by yours truly as she is exiting to paint the house or plant a rose in her favorite new dress. I tell her to reverse her little steps and go put on something appropriate for the job right now. Because I am the mom. And also most likely the buyer of the dress. So had I bleached my clothes, she would have not one iota of sympathy.

Appropriate attire for the job. If I go to a hospital Christmas party, at which I expect to be horrendously bored and have to remember names of people I meet once a year, I will nonetheless at least look good. I won't wear my ratty “Oklahoma” Tshirt and the Bears sweats I've painted in for twenty years.

If i'm mucking up a basement flood I will not, child #2, toss on my blue velvet dress and pearls. Just kidding. Not about the dress, about cleaning the basement. I don't do that. I don't care what I wear when that's being done, because I don't do it. But you get the point.

Like the photos above--Interchanging those outfits would probably be a bad idea. I'm thinking Lady Gaga hoops on a balance beam equal disaster. Playing in the snow in a leotard might get just a bit chilly. And going trick or treating in your footie jammies, well, that might actually work, so here is where the analogy begins to break down . . .

Which all leads me to wonder what I should be wearing as I go about daily business. And, not surprisingly, God has an answer to that.

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” (Colossians 3.12-14)

So if I find a relationship in distress or a job situation in disaster, maybe I just forgot to put on the right kind of clothes. Is it possible the anger or selfishness I was wearing for the occasion was totally inappropriate? (It always is. That was a trick questions.) Did I put on resentment this morning and then wonder why I was unhappy? Did I put on shoes of pride and then run right into trouble posting my views on Facebook? Why should I be surprised when I got a big fat mess all over myself if what I was wearing didn't match the job?

I'm thinking that with the leftover water out there I may wash down some of the house. The mildew on the siding could someday soon start forming its own version of “The Blob” and come inside and devour us all in bad 50's cinematography. (If you don't get the reference, I can't help you.) But knowing that will involve considerably more splashing, I will change first. The ratty “Oklahoma” Tshirt is white. It is perfect for the job.