Tip of My Iceberg

I’m not a big shoe person. I don’t do accessories. No fetish. No closets given over to footwear. Or racks of scarves.

I go for sheer comfort. And practicality. Soccer flops and tennis shoes most of the time. Which can embarrass my fashionista daughters. Where they have style, I look like I just rolled off the beach.

Not very adult. 

I’m short. It would make sense to wear heels to give me some height. Make my stumpy legs look longer.

On second thought, I don’t think I’ll chance it. I had a friend who fell off her heels and sprained her ankle pretty badly. I’ll stick with short and stumpy.

All my girls have had a fascination with shoes. And scarves. They’re all taller than me, and they love to wear those really high heels. It feels as if they’re hovering over me instead of standing beside me. They could actually tuck me under their arm pits. Or lean on me like I was a post.

Talk about feeling small.

And the scarves. Where they look gorgeous, I look like I have little soft  nooses around my neck.

The accessory gene has recently crossed the generational line.

Sydney, my nine-year-old granddaughter, is more like me. Tennis shoes or sandals. Unless her mom can talk her into boots on Sunday. She’s into whatever will get her around the fastest. Running is her chosen pace of movement. And soccer shorts. No scarves.

Then there’s Isley. At three, she’s a little more fashion conscious. But it’s not always style she’s going after.

She came down the other morning, dressed for church. Wearing her Dad’s soccer cleats. With her My Little Pony backpack.

“I’m ready to go.”

What she was ready for was questionable.

My girls like to kid me about my inability to accessorize well. Shoes should be a no brainer–they’re appropriate and necessary in most places, most climates, most of the time. Since I focus more on comfort than style, I can look unprepared. Inappropriate. Or–perish the thought–underdressed. And scarves? They tend to tighten on my neck all by themselves.

It got me to thinking about the things I add to my life to “accessorize”. The things that are necessary for me to show up as the best me possible.

Like attitude.

I’d just been to a meeting with a less than joyful attitude. I wasn’t paying attention. I didn’t want to be there. I was tired and wanted to go home. I’d crossed over the line to what my kids lovingly termed my “cranky pants”persona.

Not one of my better accessories.

The Bible talks about the things that I don’t want to miss adding to my life daily. The accessories that really make a difference.

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.?”   Micah 6:8

These accessories won’t break my budget. They do require heart preparation. Being just, loving kindness and focusing on my relationship with God makes me better able to be with people. Treating others with an unselfish focus makes me more enjoyable, thoughtful and genuinely caring.

Accessories that suit me better than an uncomfortable pair of shoes. Or a scarf squeezing my neck.

What accessories are you adding to your life?

First photo courtesy of inhabitat.com.