apathy about a dress and social justice

Dressember. Women a-dress-ing social justice in the 21st century.

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen more recent flood of selfies, something that is not normal for me. For the entire month, I am participating in Dressember, a month of dresses in order to raise awareness and money for International Justice Mission. According to their website, IJM is a "human rights agency that brings rescue to victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression." I encourage you to check out both of the links above for more information on how to get involved.

Today, when I got up, all I wanted to do was put on a nice pair of sweats and sit in a coffee shop. I did not want to put on a dress. But then I got to thinking about it and I couldn't justify not putting on a dress. Yeah, I may not want to wear a dress but what about the 27 million people who do not want to be enslaved? They don't get a choice. They don't get the option of waking up and choosing to not be oppressed and exploited and trapped. And somehow the small act of wearing a dress when I least wanted to felt more like an empathetic act of solidarity with the 27 million. I am not trying to say that I know exactly what it's like to be a victim of slavery because I wore a dress when I didn't want to. Rather, my choice to wear a dress is in response to sitting down at the table and joining the conversation about social justice.


As I reflect on my day tonight, I am reminded of the many times when I don't want to go to the church service. It is those mornings when I just want to snuggle down under my covers that I have come to recognize as the mornings when I absolutely must get my butt in to the service. It is those moments when I am most burdened, exhausted, apathetic, and cynical that I need to be surrounded by my brothers and sisters.

I think that is similar to what I experienced today in my dress. On a day when I just wanted to slip on those comfy sweats, I needed to be surrounded by my fellow Dressember sisters and remember that ultimately Dressember isn't about me, it's about 27 million brothers and sisters who need the attention that 31 days of dresses can bring to the injustice of slavery.

a people break and being human

We are meant for relationships. We are not meant to be islands of independence.

Being created in the image of God inherently means that we are relational.

What I'm realizing is that this means that I cannot simply be a lean, mean machine moving between school and sleep. I need others, I need community.

More than any amount of bucket-listing, I need time with people.

And so, until my time as a nomad is finished, I am putting the list to the side. Instead, I am focusing on nourishing my soul with God and with others.

quarters, buckets, and playing the victim

Today I turned 24 years old.

Now, I know, some people may say that I am really young still while others would feel like I am quite old.

And I think I would agree with both.

There are parts of me that feels quite young; there are so many things that I have never experienced. Yet at the same time, I've been through experiences that I don't think any 20-something plans on going through.

So, here I am feeling both old and young at the same time. But that was not the goal and that means I've once again become distracted (it happens more often than I would like to admit).

I am 364 days from being half a century old. And there are so many things that I want to do yet I sit and complain about how I can't do anything because of my past illnesses. When someone asks why I haven't traveled outside of the US like I claim I want to, I use my illnesses as an excuse.

Why do I do that? 

Why do I make myself the victim to my life experiences?

Why do I put myself in the passive position of not having control in my life? 

I'm not sure of the answer to those questions. But maybe it's not about having the answers to every question. I'm choosing to not sit and ponder those questions. I'm choosing to act.

Which leads me to my announcement. Today, October 16, 2013, marks the first day of my new quest to be active in my own life and not let my illnesses continue to hold me down.

I'm calling it Quarters In A Bucket.

My short-term goal is to accomplish as many items on my bucket list as possible before I turn 25.
Long-term, my goal is to change my habit of inaction and excuses into a habit of action and freedom.

Here is to a year of change, action, and freedom.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. - Galatians 5:1(NIV)