The Quest for Appearances

JESSICA ROAN|GUEST It is a yearly battle come school picture day. My kids have the cheesiest smiles. Since they were young, we have tried to explain that they can’t smile with their mouths closed or they will end up looking like the Joker. And while less than perfect school pictures drive me crazy, I told my mom a few years ago that I wouldn’t get picture retakes any ore. “We get what we get,” I told her, “It is just a snapshot of their childhood.” Nevertheless, after a fairly successful picture endeavor last year, I thought the battle was finally over. Not so fast. This year, we definitely needed a photo retake for my youngest. But we didn’t do it. And really, why do they have to be perfect? These efforts I’ve put into my children’s school pictures remind me of other areas of my life in which I care about appearances. About how things look to others. I want people to approve of my yard, compliment my clothes, and be somewhat impressed with the cleanliness of my house. And these examples just touch the surface. In a world driven by social media personas, my parenting, spiritual life, and level of involvement in the church always seem sub-par compared to those women I see who can “do it all” so well. As much as I hate to admit it, I care what others think...

The Quest for Appearances2023-03-24T17:45:30+00:00
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