One day someone gave me some hand-me-down clothes. This is
another of my earliest memories. Included in the clothes was a swimming suit. A
bikini. And I loved it from the first moment I saw it. At this point in my
life, I had not learned anything about modesty. Probably because it just plain
hadn’t been needed yet. But I remember being broken hearted when my mom told me
I couldn’t wear the bikini because it wasn’t modest. So Mom took that bikini
top and sewed a “skirt” all around it, so that it would cover me up. And then I
got to wear that swimming suit.
I’m sure I was no older than 2 or 3, but I will never forget
that. Most people don’t worry about children that tiny being modest. Bikinis,
tank tops, super short dresses, etc.—little kids like that have “nothing to
show,” so at that age those kinds of clothes are just “cute.” But that
experience is something I remembered all growing up—that we don’t wear clothes
that are not modest. That experience influenced the importance that I, as a
mom, put on modesty for my children. It doesn’t matter what age you are or what
kind of body you have. Respecting your body is good for everyone.
