Pandas!!

New Panda Slippers

So, these may very well not be the chicest things I have ever worn, but I absolutely love my new panda bear slippers! (Only $1.30! so awesome!!) But, while I would love to show off these darling panda faces (who could say “no” to those toes?!?), it is what they made me think about that is more important. I was sitting there, admiring my darling purchase, when I watched some lovely young woman stand in line at the food court.

She had it all: the leather boots, fitted pants, elegant shirt/vest, lovely scarf swept fashionably across her shoulder, hair styled perfectly. However, the two friends with her were far more dressed-down. One was wearing her college sweats with Ugg boots and an old sweatshirt; the other had on some blue jeans, a Superman t-shirt, and bright neon pink tennies. The comfortable-clothes wearing girls were laughing, chatting, and having a wonderful time. Meanwhile, ms. style-queen was just standing there, saying nothing, and staring at them as though through a wall. I didn’t even realize they were together until the other two turned and tried to engage her in conversation. Even then, she just seemed distant. And while I watched ms. style-queen, I couldn’t help but think that I would rather have my amazing panda bear slippers, my neon blue sunglasses, my winnie-the-pooh t-shirt, and my crazy personality, than be that seemingly perfect woman.

Life isn’t all about being perfect or presenting the perfect image. If the rest of the world is like me, it just takes too much work appearing perfect all the time. Constantly on guard about what you say, what you wear, and whether or not you’re so crude as to appear to be human. It’s exhausting! She looked so unhappy and stiff. I wanted to go up and giver her a hug, take off her scarf, let her hair down, stick her in my panda slippers and tell her to have some fun once and a while! Don’t hide behind perfection so much!!

Life is about the ability to communicate in two ways. Naturally, the most important part is the ability to communicate with yourself; to know who you are and who you want to be. And it is possible that ms. style-queen has this part down to a “T.” Maybe she really is just that formal in her own bedroom, alone with herself. Some people are (including one of my good friends).

But she seemed to be failing abysmally at the second part: the ability to communicate with those around you. It’s not that we have to care about what others think all the time, but it goes against our very nature to be alone and isolated. She had come out with friends, so surely she was looking for social communication in some way. She cared enough to do something with them rather than just stay home. Nor am I saying that she needed to dress down like her friends. The biggest problem is that beyond her clothing, she communicated nothing whatsoever. She wore her clothing like a suit of armor, her hair like a helmet, and her face could have been a mask for all the personality it showed. You couldn’t even tell that she was their friend; she communicated nothing whatsoever about her thoughts or her feelings to the people around her. She was so rigid, so cool, so totally in control, that I think most of us would wish we could be her. The ability to face all the world, without showing what goes on within, is a desire so many of us have. But all I could think was that she seemed so unhappy and so unconnected with the two friends beside her.

Maybe you like dressing up; please show us what you got! But when you do, pretend you are wearing panda slippers and also show people the smile such a thought brings to you. To everyone out there, please don’t hid behind perfection! Let loose and live!

P.s. this was spur-of-the-moment, please forgive grammar/spelling errors!