WIWS: Father's Day

Linking up with Fine Linen and Purple this evening for What I Wore Sunday.

Today I could have actually had my husband take a full-length picture, but when I asked him, he said his hands were too greasy (he was happily eating a sandwich . . . how could I ruin that for him?).  So I hope I don't get dropped from the linky for this.  I've been okay so far . . . you can see the skirt ends about there, around the knee, and I'm wearing a black Spartan sandal/flip-flop hybrid.

Slip (worn as a blouse):  old Noa Noa
Skirt:  old Noa Noa
Cardigan:  borrowed/stolen Mossimo (from my mom, I think)
Sandals:  Faded Glory

Here's one a kind person took of us three after Mass.




Squirt looks like he's photobombing. 

It was a a pleasant Mass, with Squirt at about 90% for behavior.  It helped that I had one of those waterless, to-go toothebrushes in my purse; gave that to him about 1/4 of the way through and it kept him entertained the whole time.  Kid loves to brush his teeth, I'm impressed.  (You can see him holding it in the pic above.)

I didn't have to work today, and I'm off tomorrow, so I had the luxury of dressing up.  Most days I have to wear my uniform because I have to dash off to work, or else I go on Saturday evening.  So I brought out some old Noa Noa favorites, which definitely fit much better two summers ago, but let's ignore that.

People have been talking recently about the appropriateness of wearing sleeveless shirts or dresses to Mass.  The best has already been said, but I like to be a parrot for the sake of thinking aloud.  So much depends on culture.  In mid-Florida, the climate this type of year is sweltering, and we've just come off of the cusp of a pretty good winter, a.k.a. the-season-after-Chrismas, a.k.a almost summer.  So the heat is quite a burden, and in most parishes, people take it for granted that a tank top is acceptable.  I've even seen people in spaghetti strap tanks.  I draw the line at tube dresses--like the fashionable wedding gowns women are wearing everywhere with no sleeves whatsoever, and a straight line collar over the bodice, underneath the armpits and around the back--looks like they're wearing a bath towel to church.  That's when you know that modest it is not.  I saw several of those today, but we weren't going to our home parish, which is more traditional, and it's common to see veils there.

Anyway, there are so many things that factor into modesty, culture and climate being two of them.  When I lived in Rome, the nearest English-language Mass was quite a walk from where I lived.  I wore a modest shell top, with a collar right up to my neck and "sleeves" whose cuffs were right on the outermost top part of my shoulders.  A nun came up to me during Mass that morning and handed me a shawl, indicating that I was to drape it over my bare upper arms.  She was nothing less than helpful about it, but being only 20 and for the first time out of the country, I was a bit taken aback.  Even in my traditional and modest parish, Florida custom permits tank tops with thinner straps and lower collars.

It's nice, though.  If you're ever in Rome in the heat of summer, remember to wear long shorts and bring a cardigan before you visit Saint Peter's.  They won't let you in if you're any barer than that, and, to be honest, it made me happy to see the world subject to the Church's standards, for once.

I still occasionally wear the sleeveless shirt or dress to Mass, and I probably shouldn't.  But I think it's important to stress that, in an instance when a woman is finding herself so distracted by worrying about her modesty in the presence of the Lord, it's best she doesn't beat herself over the head about it.  The fact that she's even thinking about it is sign that she wishes to please God, and He'd certainly rather have her full adoring attention during the liturgy than anxiety about His displeasure or, worse, what other people might be thinking of her and her children.  So say a prayer, let it go, and do better next time!

After our sandwiches, we moseyed down to the city for a visit to the aquarium.

So I hope you had a happy Father's Day; we did!