Modest Monday….My Path to Modesty Part 2

If you missed the first part of this series you can read it HERE.

( My Best Friends Carla and I going to prom, my dress is ankle length)

When I left off the other day I was in High School and going into college. During college I guess you could say I sowed some wild oats. They were not as wild as some, I guess and even though I was in a sorority, I still stayed true to most of the convictions I was raised with.  I still attended church regularly, was a part of Baptist Campus Ministries and I not only helped with our church camp, myself and a dear friend for many years named Bethany and I, did a great deal of the planning on it. We also continued to sing in our group we had started, called the TwelvePole Valley Girls, it consisted of my sister Krissy, myself, Bethany and our dear Aunt Missy.  We were modest even at camp, back then the Preachers would not have hesitated to correct us in an instant, actually they still would there! Bethany and I led the music at camp and we also taught the younger kids. We tried our best to set a good example for the kids in dress and in speech and actions.  There were a lot of  younger eyes gazing upon us!

As my college years progressed I decided to leave Marshall and attend Beauty School. My Aunt was a cosmetologist, well actually she still is to this day.  She was a huge influence on me. She dressed modest but stylish. Her hair always looked so pretty. I spent countless hours growing up at her salon answering the phone, cleaning, organizing and many other things just so I could be close to her. She was thrilled when I decided to attend Beauty school and I will never forget the day she showed up at school with a set of keys to the shop, she had made just for me. During my time at beauty school, it was not the same as it was when my Aunt graduated in 1959 at 17 years old. Things had really changed. Morals had started to decline and it was here that I was exposed to almost much more than my conservative Baptist heart could handle.

I would get into all that I was exposed to but that would be another post! It was a struggle of good versus evil everyday.  Some days I really hated to go because of all the evil and yet at the same time, I was good at what I did and enjoyed it.  It was also during this time that I lost 3 Grandparents within one year.  When my Dads mom became ill with cancer I missed many days of school.  So many I had to take a leave of absence. I spent many nights at her hospital room. I was the youngest and my cousin had 2 little boys so she needed to be home. When I went to take my leave I was jumped on by the secretary at the school. She told me I needed to get my priorities straight and that should be my school work first.

See folks I posted about modesty and the heart HERE.  I cannot possible speak about my path to modesty without including this.  I was raised that family was important. I had many Aunts and Uncles. One Uncle, the one who lived near Amish Country in OH, he had 16 kids. I spent countless hours there growing up with my cousins. My mom and grandma were always going visiting.  You didn’t Skype back in those days or send a facebook message, you got up and went and visited. In another post I will talk more about this, but see my grandparents were important to me. There were part of who I was. So when I was told I needed to get my priorities straight, I looked at the secretary and sassy as I was at 20 almost 21 and told her I agreed. She was right. I did need to get them straight, which was why I was in her office asking for a leave. I told her my Grandma did not have much time. However, I had a lifetime to finish school.  She told me I would regret it. The owner knew my Aunt and me well, he understood. I left there and did not feel upset that I had taken that leave and to this day I do not regret it.

( The last birthday party we had for my Grandpa before he passed away.  My Grandma and Grandpa are on the swing, my brother in back, me in the middle holding my baby cousin, and my cousin Angie on the right.)

My Grandma, the one who was dying when I took my leave at Beauty School, she always told me to take pride in my appearance, not a sinful pride,  but an I got up and got ready, not in my PJs at Wal-Mart kind of pride :).  She was always put together and always modest when she went somewhere.  She always had her lipstick on too! That was another thing she taught me lol.  During those last days, we had many talks. We talked about clothes and hair and God, our ancestors, and just life.  I brushed her hair, I sang to her. I was still learning lessons that had to last, I knew the end was coming.

I had a lot of good teachers growing up on modesty. My whole church was filled with them. I don’t really recall anyone then dressing immodest. Honestly, even when I go back now everyone is dressed modest. I like knowing that some things just don’t change even when the rest of the world seems intent on doing so. My Aunts all dressed modest, as did my Grandmothers too.  My mom was very modest as well.  They all passed it down to me, even during times when I wanted to rebel. I could hear their voices and see their faces.

1. My Moms Mom….My Mamaw, My Aunt Maxie, My Aunt Bonnie, and my Uncle all wonderful followers of Christ and all taught me so much! I am so thankful for them! There are more siblings but not all are pictured.

2. My Aunt Bonnie, My mom, Myself, My Mamaw, and My papaw

This was taken at our house, about 1982 or so. My Grandma, Dad’s mom and My Grandpa, Dad’s Dad

As time progressed I did finish school. I also went on to become a massage therapist, I specialized in pregnancy massage and labor and delivery. I also became a Doula and did lactation counseling. I opened up my own office and we also gave childbirth classes there and had a moms group.  After a while I got offered an internship in TX.  I felt I couldn’t refuse this and by this time I was 25, not married with no prospect of getting married. Why not go?

This is me, getting to be my Sisters Doula 🙂 Nothing like being able to welcome your niece into the world!

I will share the rest of this in the next post and that will most likely be the last one in this series…..I hope you stay with me!

Here is what I wore…..I have a couple of outfits to share!

My husband is so adorable! I just love him!!!

The above I wore as an almost last blast for summer wearing white…..

Headscarf: Claire’s I have worn this many times 🙂

Dress: Deborah and Co

Undershirt: Half Tees

White Sweater: Dress Barn

Flip Flips: Old Navy

Please give me some grace in the above pictures….long story short and not to get graphic but my lip is swollen almost inside out, it is much better at the end of the day now BUT when those pictures were taken this morning, I just couldn’t hardly smile :). I also felt miserable!

Anyway here is what I wore to church:

Headscarf: It is a belt that goes to another Dress from Dainty Jewells

Dress: Liz Clairborne…bought at Goodwill VERY cheap! 🙂

Belt: Came with the Dress

Shoes: Goodwill 🙂

I will be honest, because of my lip I was hesitant to go to church this morning. I wanted to wear a paper bag! 🙂 However, just a vanity issue was not a reason enough to stay home. I could dress modest, I could walk, I wasn’t “sick” per say so I went ahead and went. I am so glad I did! I needed my time with my Lord and Savior! We had a wonderful Sunday School time, wonderful church service, we sang with the choir and it was just so good to praise my Lord, we a noonday meal that was great as always! Just so glad I went ahead and didn’t let a minor issue keep me out of Gods house.

I hope you all have a blessed week!

In CHRIST,

Laura