Do your clothes tell the story of who you are?

I just read a delightful book “The Secret Lives of Dresses” that put me in the mind of my mother.  The book brought back many conversations I had with mom about how one is supposed to dress.

The memories were often like this:  As I would be getting dressed to go out somewhere she would peer over her glasses and ask, “Is that what you’re wearing?”  When I would defiantly say, “Yes," she would just look at me and sniff and say, “Hmm.”

Worse yet, she might ask, “Do you really want someone to see you in that?”  Truth be told she was often right.  The moment I left the house looking ‘schleppy’ would be the one time I would run into someone that I didn’t want to be seen looking like that.

Yet, somehow, I managed to survive the comments and develop my own self of style.  I love dresses and am truly a throwback to an era of wearing dresses rather than pants.

That is why I enjoyed “The Secret Lives of Dresses”.  Each dress had a story.  So what’s your style?  Do your clothes tell the story of who you are?  

Fashion fades, only style remains the same ~ Coco Chanel

Book clubs….Whatcha Reading?

As I watched the first of the three-day goodbye to Oprah, it brought back so many memories of watching the show with my mom.

My favorite memory of the Oprah show through the years was that she made reading cool.  I had started a book club with a group of friends before Oprah kicked off hers.  However, it was not until Oprah started talking about book clubs that reading became in vogue and I was no longer alone in the quest for good books.

All of sudden my mother started telling her friends that her daughter was in a book club. 

My mother even helped me host a book club meeting and cooked all the food to coincide with the book we were reading.  Yeah, Oprah validated book clubs for my mother.  Ahh…. Her show will be missed….

Who Wants To Know?

The recent event with Maria Shriver’s marriage reminds me of my mother’s caution of having too many people in your business and broadcasting your personal life.

The news this week has been filled with the so-called scandal of a cheating husband, a wronged wife, a mistress, and children caught in the crossfire.  But….the real question is…  Why is this our business?  There is absolutely no reason that this should have dominated the airwaves this week. 

If someone asked my mother a question that she truly felt was none of their business, her retort would be “Who wants to know.”  Even if the person answered, “I do,” she would then ask again with even more pepper in her voice, “What do you need this information for?”  This would usually shut the person up and they would never get the ‘gossip’ or the inside dirt that they were seeking.

Once again, my mother was right!  Why do we care to celebrate in people’s misery and shame?  We should look to honor their privacy and let people live their lives in peace.

When you are in trouble, people who call to sympathize are really looking for the particulars. ~ Edgar Watson Howe, Country Town Sayings, 1911

Book Trailer

The Angel

Happy Mother's Day!!! I wanted to repost this as a wonderful tribute to Mothers everywhere

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"


"Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."


The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy."


God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."


Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"


God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."


"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?"


God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray."


"Who will protect me?"


God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking it's life."


"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore."


God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."


At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name."


"You will simply call her, 'Mom.'"

~Unknown

A Daughter’s First Sorrow

I was watching the View yesterday as they were discussing the upcoming Mother’s Day Holiday. One of the hosts, Whoopi Goldberg, choked up as she reflected on this being the first Mother’s Day without her mom.

Watching the show, it immediately sent me back in time to that first Mother’s Day when I realized that Mom was not there in the flesh. I remember sitting at Mass and when they passed around the carnations, red for the living, white if they had died, I started to sob. Ohhh how I cried and had such a deep sense of sorrow. Thankfully, friends held me and let me have my moment to grieve.

So for those of you who are experiencing the first …take a deep breath! Honor your mother in a way that would suit the both of you and cry if you must and laugh if you can. Peace