Special thanks to Laurie Kemp for this writing prompt. It caused a whole flood of memories, and ideas for blog posts. What could be better?
Laurie's prompt was simple:
What clothes do you put on when you want to feel especially good? She asked that we really think of the reasons for these particular items to make us feel uplifted or powerful or whatever we feel when we dress this way.
I immediately thought of my long pocket dresses. And here I want to give props to my friend Annmarie who introduced me to the Auselily brand available on amazon. Casual dresses in a variety of colors, super comfortable and practical, a teacher's dream. And I want to emphasize -- POCKETS.
I immediately purchased some of these dresses and, lo and behold, discovered they had a line of maxi dresses as well.
The Maxi!
For years I have tried to find comfortable maxi dresses. It is a style I have always adored. But many of the dresses on the market were too dressy or the material was weird or they had plunge necklines or spaghetti straps or they just weren't considered in style, so not even available.
I not only purchased many knee-length dresses, I also purchased many of the long ones. Dresses with flowers and 1960s style designs, dresses in deep purple or indigo, which prompted our school counselor to tell me that wearing those dresses made me "look like the queen of CLMS."
So yeah -- I guess the good feeling translated to the outer world.
Then came quarantine, and my dresses languished in the closet. I swear, I cannot see those long dresses hanging there without a longing to wear them.
On a Sunday in April I decided enough was enough. Yes, like most people I had been dressed in casual clothes, sans bra, for weeks. But on this particular Sunday I was making a nice dinner and decided, heck, time to dress up!
I showered, dressed, poured myself a glass of wine and took this photo and posted it:
The response was immediate. I received over a dozen comments and over 133 likes/loves.
This small act seemed to reach out to people who were probably in the same place I was -- in a holding pattern. Something had to be done to break through.
Now back to the prompt. Laurie says to think deeply about WHY wearing this clothing is important. And then I was transported to another time.
Long flowered skirts were popular when I was in high school. In sewing class my sophomore year I made a maxi skirt and a peasant blouse to go with it. The skirt had a green background covered with a variety of tiny flowers. The peasant blouse was a complimentary shade of spring green. To my knowledge there is no picture of me in this outfit, but it is one I fondly remember.
**
As I grow older, I am learning that aging is about finding pieces of yourself from the past, and applying them to life today.
And that takes me to June 19, 1971.
This was an evening that I went on a double date to dinner and to see Elton John, someone who was just breaking on the scene at the time. The other girl on the date was Ellen, a friend from school. The guys went to one of the all boy Catholic schools. These weren't great romances or anything -- we had gone through a common experience together which I now plan on writing about in another post.
Anyway, Ellen and I both decided to wear long dresses. We were being taken to one of Cleveland's premier restaurants, Pier W. It was a perfect summer evening to sit in this exquisite restaurant that sits right on Lake Erie, with a view of the Cleveland skyline. I know I had rarely, if ever, been in such a fancy place.
Then the concert, which was unbelievably fantastic and made me a hard and fast Elton John fan.
But it is what happened afterward. The concert was at Public Hall in downtown Cleveland. The auditorium is on what is called "the mall" -- a walking place and public area. It features a large fountain.
And that is where we founnd ourselves after the show -- along with many other fans. We saw that a ton of people were hopping into the fountain, dancing in the water, joyful and a bit crazy, singing Elton lyrics at the top of their lungs. Ellen and I didn't hesitate -- long skirts and all, we found ourselves in the fountain, dancing with abandon.
Just writing about this is bringing tears to my eyes. A piece of my past came into full relief today.
Why does this clothing make you feel good? is now easy to answer.
When I put on a long, comfortable dress,
I'm fifteen,
enchanted by music,
dancing in the water...
and this time...
with pockets.
