Veils

It is a pity that long lace mantillas are not recognized by the current fashion world. They are very aesthetically appealing.

The stupidities incessant cable tv watching

It is unfathomable to me how many people waste so much time of the valuable, unique adventurous sojourns of their life upon this earth in watching a second or third rate re-dramatisation of life in the form of series dramas or tv shows or soap operas.

This is the only life I have on this earth, my business life is too haphazard and whimsical to want to escape through the artificially preserved tension of a crime-fighting or discovery drama or a what-if-fantasy. My love life is tempestuous and tantalizing enough without trailing after ficticious relationships with air-brushed, painted, died, and self-consciously sensuous men who have unrealisitic and sometimes mindless tensions with unrealistically salon-groomed, manicured, push-up bra clad, gun clutching actresses. My man, my family and friends are dramatic enough and I am a human whirlwind of drama. Do not misunderstand me. I love movies, when well acted out, well executed, well-written, and weighty in consequence. But the series dramas of today have nothing on my life, my real life, as it is.

For that matter, the cheap romance novels have got nothing on my life. Moreover, those darn video games that men seem so entranced with have got nothing on my life, with all of its humor, joy, sorrow, bitterness, sweetness, swiftness, steadiness, unpredictability, adventure and peace. Yes, peace, even in the midst of all this uncertainty. To those of you who spend hours on end doing these things, I can only express my sympathy, because your lives must be dull right now. Either that or you have been blinded to the adventure and beauty and wonder that is right in front of your eyes.

Beautiful views of the sea

The ocean has always been one of the most powerful images of the infinite mercy, power, beauty and majesty of God. Though used as a subject in art constantly through the ages, finding something in art that will capture the wonder of each glistening green and blue, each curlings wave, each foamy pleasure; is as unlikely as being able to scale a star, liquidate a mountain or unravel the mysteries in the human eye.

On the unromantic, prosaic habit of wearing casual clothing constantly

There will always be a time and place for a lady to dress casually.
What irks me is the fact that women in this country wear faded jeans and shapeless T-shirts so often, that the men in their life, and even they themselves, have forgotten that
we were all born to be princesses and princes.

Dressing in a manner that takes more time and effort, but is more visually pleasing, conveys to the viewers that they are worth taking time to please. Also, it indicates a sense of one's own dignity. And that digity, and the poetry and romance of the human person, is a truth that must never be forgotten.

Musings on Love

It is a splendid but mysterious truth that all men secretly want to rescue the love of their lives. All men are born wild things, and yet they cannot truly be happy unless in their very freedom, they bind themselves; that in their very wildness they temper themselves.

The usual impetus for the revelation of this strange truth, comes in the form of a woman. Though like the man, she way relish an adventure and victorious battle, they wage wars in more concentrated spheres, and prefer to battle in groups. They are not naturally solitary and unsettled. They are quite adept at finding a cosy spot to take root and bloom, and if they a plunged in inamicable situations, they naturally want to do this or that or add this or that to make the environment more inviting and appealing.

Every woman needs to make a home, but making one merely for herself is not enough. She has to make it for someone else. And it must not be a merely external home. The woman wants herself to be the home. She does not merely want to be a bearer of gifts, she is to be the gift herself. She does not merely decorate and adorn herself and all around her, she is the beauty, the gem in the cleft of the rock, the guiding light in the shadows. She wants to give her labors, her smiles, her tears, the work of her hands and the light of her eyes to her husband and her children. (For secretly all women want to bring forth new life and nourish and shelter little ones.)

She needs the man to do all of these things. Hence, in receiving her, he gives her her the gift she most desires.

Likewise, the man, once he has fought enough battles, vanquished his enemies, he must do something even more daunting. He must conquer himself. Only once this feat is achieved, can he be ready to sweetly imprison the heart of his beloved. Hence, while the woman captivates the wild and independent man, she sets him free; and while the man gives himself to the woman, he is reaping the joys of this joint victory.

On the mysterious emotional phenomenon called "Falling in Love"

Basic Principles: All Christians are called to love one another as brothers/sisters in Christ. Love is an act of the will, which is supported by a knowledge or an insight; an act of the intellect. And there is sometimes accompanying these two acts, a mysterious movement of the passions toward another person.

It is this mysterious emotional phenomenon; that is my chief concern in this little note. The phenomenon is called mysterious because it can be aroused almost instantaneously, without warning, though often at a recognizable starting point in time, and sometimes with no rational explanation as to why.

Yes, sometimes the passion is followed by and fueled by reason, likeness etc. The passion itself though, is not neccessarily dependent upon it.

The phenomenon is commonly called, "falling in love", an insightful phrase! For one is so vulnerable, so haphazard, so blind in movement and so insane, one could readily compare one's self to one who is falling blindly in the dark.

Here are some common symptoms of this epidemic, though they may vary according to case, degree and host;

1) Sleep deprivation caused by excessive absorption in the thought of the beloved.

2) A nearly constant state of distraction caused by excessive absorption in the thought of the beloved.

3) A distate for eating when it is not accompanied by the prescence of the beloved.

4) A distaste for any given activity that is not accompanied by the presence of the beloved.

5) An aversion to any flirtation with any other party besides the beloved.

6) A trembling of the hands caused by the sound of the beloved's voice.

7)A knocking of the kness caused by looking to deeply into the beloved's eyes or at his/her mouth.

8) A loss for words (even from those typically eloquent)in the presence of the beloved.

9) A tendency to tears at the slightest provocation (in the female).

10) A tendency towards annoyance at the slightest provocation (in the male).


Such are the symptoms. Looking at them in writing they appear rather irrational, but the practice, so I am told, feels the most reasonable hungering the soul can experience.

On matching clothing in general

It boggles my mind how many people I see who wear stuff on the street that should be in the garbage. I live in a small town, and I used to live in Southern California.

Over there the problem was people did not wear enough clothing for dignity.
Here the problem seems to be that nobody can see how dreadful they are making themselves look.

Yes, I admit it, there are outfits I have worn outside that did not flatter me, but that was for heavy housecleaning and yard work. It occured to me that I should not dress only for myself, but that other people have to look at me to, so I might as well make it worth their while.

All joking aside, every human being has an inherent beauty, especially women, so why would you not want to glorify it? (Unless it is for penitential reasons. Even then, why impose the penance on the people who see you?)

Today's culture does not help. The attitude is, this is my body, so I will just wear whatever is comfortable, even if it is ugly. And yet the Multi-billion dollar beauty industry sells how many magazines a year?

All of us women want to feel and be beautiful, and we are, so let's dress like we are. We are made in the image and likeness of God, we are temples of the Holy Spirit.

The three areas I want to address most are dignity, integrity, harmony, and splendor.

What are examples of clothing that is not dignified?

Low rider jeans that expose you when you bend over,

Tops exposing midriffs when one stretches or bends,

Plunging necklines designed specifically to expose one's breasts,

Clothing that clings to one's curves instead of flowing over them,

Teasing skirts,

Exposed bra seams, bra straps, bra colors, patterns, etc.

(Same goes for the other end)


What are examples of clothing that just screams dignity;

Tops with sleeves that draw attention to your waist,

Clothing that has embroidered or lace deatails,

Long skirts and dresses made out of soft, flowing material,

Shoes that are delicate and lady-like

Stockings (not ugly white ones that make you look like a Victorian school girl!)

Jewelry


What are examples of clothing that lacks integrity?

Destroyed jeans (I do not care if it is in or out, it does not make you look "real"
it makes you look like a beggar),

Wife beater shirts or ribbed tanks by themselves
(You are just walking around in underwear and you do not know it),

White under shirts with nothing over them

Stockings with holes in them

Anything with an obvious stain mark


What is an example of something lacking harmony?

Pairing a dress or skirt with tennis shoes (NO, no, no! BAD!)

Pairing a rain jacket or old coat over a nice dress

Ugly shoes

Pairing a sweatshirt or hoodie with a skirt and chapel veil (Good grief!)

Wearing a common T-shirt with a semi-formal skirt at a formal occasion,

Wearing a shapeless T-Shirt with a skirt,

Pairing a logo t-shirt with a patterned skirt

Mixing navy and black

Mixing Two or more patterns


What are examples of clothing that is lacking splendor

Wearing any color that does not go with your coloring

Wearing baggy or ill-fitting clothing

Wearing clothing that completly hides your shape

Wearing clothes that make you feel ugly or heavier


You get the idea.