She Made the Dress

This weekend I had the pleasure of playing Aunt JacJac to my best friend’s daughter. The three of us went to Dallas “Prom Dress Shopping”.  I was so excited to have the chance to spend the day with them; getting to shop was just the cherry on the top.  She had one destination in mind, her mother and I had several because shopping and shopping should always be balanced with eating and eating really good stuff. We started at 9 a.m. and were determined to make the day all about her. The drive to Dallas was quick and easy as unbridled excitement hung in the air. I was excited, but since I remember shopping with my teenage girl, my excitement was tempered
by experience.  In this case the stress wasn’t on my shoulders. My job was to stay calm and referee if needed…. When shopping with a teenager and her mom a referee is ALWAYS a good idea. When I was in high school, prom wasn’t a big deal to me. I saw a dress in a store window at the mall where I worked. I put the dress in lay-away and later when I found my friend had unintentionally bought the same dress, we were both tickled pink in a Scarlett O’Hara kind of way. Things certainly have changed.The store was “Whatchamacallit”. It looked benign enough on the outside, but inside a new story began to unfold. When I say I was shocked when I walked in, I’m not exaggerating one tiny bit. It was like a 1000 cotton candy blowers exploded at the same time. The acres of dress racks were so tightly packed, you literally had to maneuver between them by doing the breast stroke as if swimming in a pool. I did not see one small child and I know why; if a child got lost beneath the sea of tulle, sequins and beads, they would never be found. My heart broke a million times Saturday as I saw my little princess become overwhelmed with the magnitude of the decision, the frustration of the process and the intense heat inside the dressing room. When I finally detected a meltdown was close, I suggested we all take a break, go eat something magnificent and give her have a chance to process her choices. We ate lunch at PF Chang’s and then back into the battle we went. At the end of the day we sat on the couch outside the dressing rooms. Actually, I think I had more or less melted into the couch itself; if we looked anything like we felt,then we looked like we had been dragged behind wild horses for several miles in the dry dusty dessert. A woman with her daughter in tow, walked up to the couch and asked… “May I ask you what the best way to attack this store is? What’s the secret?” In all seriousness I told her straight up…. “ With Xanax and a bottle of wine!” Yes, I was exhausted! I have no idea what time we finally walked out of the store, but the fact we were on a first name basis with most of the personnel should give you a good idea as to the number of hours we were there. I do know the three of us were physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted. Oh how I wish she could see herself through my eyes. True beauty begins inside and bubbles its way outward, it believes in you regardless of the direction society trends and it walks to the beat of an inner drum with no regrets and no hesitation… She looked amazing in every single dress she tried on. She is simply a stunningly beautiful girl. Although the final selection was beautiful, and I loved seeing the smile on her face, the simple truth is… She made the dress, the dress didn’t make her. XOXOXO my Sweet One. Thank you for the amazing memory and the oh so many laughs. Your Aunt JacJac couldn’t be more proud.