I am tired of wearing my hair in a bun every day.

Travelin’Oma, Week 3, Day 5. One fourth of the way through the class. (Can you tell I am a math person?!)

I am tired of wearing my hair in a bun every day.

“You must do everything you can to make your appearance pleasing, but the minute you walk out the door, forget yourself and start concentrating on others.” – Susan W. Tanner

I have loved this quote since the first time I heard it. Much of my life I have been very self-conscious of myself in public, both physically and otherwise. This thought from Susan W. Tanner was a revelation! I love the balance that it implies: we should look our best, but then focus on serving and helping others feel comfortable with themselves and loved. One or the other is not the answer, but a combination of both.

That said, today I have been thinking a lot about the first part – the looking our best part. It is important to feel good about how you look. Some days I do alright, other days, not so much. I did a lot of reevaluation this afternoon of my own personal style. I have been discouraged the last few weeks about this particular topic, largely due to the fact that all but about four of my shirts and two pairs of capris are packed away in a storage unit in Wendover until we find a place to live. Similarly, my curlers and straightener for my hair are also packed. Fortunately, I kept out a few pairs of fun earrings, and they have saved me from going straight to frump-ville as I have been wearing the same clothes over and over with my hair in a bun or braid every day. Even though I can’t fix those problems for now (although my mom did offer to lend me her curlers until we officially relocate), I did come to a couple of conclusions after hashing it out with my mom that should help in the future.

I suppose the key to this, and many other areas of life, is to reevaluate often. Am I projecting the kind of person I think I am deep down inside? Do I seem approachable and gracious? Are there ruts I am stuck in that are making things worse? What is one (inexpensive) way that I can immediately feel like I’ve had style pick-me-up?

Maybe as I’m hanging up my skirts and folding my sweaters and placing them on the shelves of my new closet, I can have these questions in mind and make some more headway.