What an Interesting World We Live in....

Last night A and I went to a parents' meeting for her pageant. This year the pageant coordinator is a different person than last year. Last year they emphasized that they wanted the girls to be themselves, be natural, etc....said that if the girls don't normally wear makeup and aren't comfortable in makeup they didn't need to wear it for the pageant, etc. This year seems to be more serious -- they said the girls needed to wear makeup appropriate for being onstage under the lights, talked about the types of gowns they expected to see (full, ball gown style skirts are preferred over more simple gowns) , etc. The pageant coordinator this year is very much into the pageant scene...both of her daughters compete and she has judged pageants. I love the pageant coordinator (one of A's teachers) but the pageant seems to be taking on a different flavor than it did last year. I don't see the same emphasis on the girls just being their natural selves.

One interesting thing is that the information packet they sent home said no strapless dresses. I liked that...especially after last year when some of the girls wore gowns that had more shape in them than the girl had, and you could see how uncomfortable the girls were, worrying about falling out of their dresses. So the pageant coordinator said last night that no strapless dresses were allowed...and the other pageant coordinator jumped in and said that strapless dressed WOULD be allowed, as long as they were "age appropriate and modest." OK, here's where I'm confused. How is a strapless gown age appropriate for a 12 or 13 year old girl? And how is a strapless gown modest to start with? That just doesn't compute in my mind. They said they got the "no strapless gowns" stuff from the pageant packet from one of the local high schools...if the high school won't let girls wear strapless gowns in its pageant, why would a middle school let the girls wear strapless gowns?

I realize that my dress standards are different from those of 99% of the population. I'm o.k. with that -- the way people dress really is a very personal, individual thing. But kids grow up too fast...I think putting a 12 or 13 year girl in a strapless gown encourages her to grow up too quickly. I am grateful for companies that design and manufacture modest gowns and other clothing. It's hard to find, and it's definitely pricey, but if more people demanded modest clothing there would be more options and the prices would come down.

Here is a link to A's dress:
http://www.eternitystore.com/detail.aspx?ID=82

You would be hardpressed to convince me that this dress isn't every bit as beautiful and appropriate as any gown anyone else will be wearing in this pageant, or any other. Last year A was the only girl (out of 20) in the pageant who wore a gown with sleeves. I daresay she will be the only one again this year. But she will be comfortable and confident, knowing that she is maintaining her personal standards and that she doesn't have to worry about whether her dress will fall down, her bra straps showing, etc. That, to me, is beautiful.