I should have been braver.  Should have stood up to my mom when she demanded I wear ridiculous outfits to school.  I mean, seriously, nobody could have pulled this off without getting teased to death or the crap beaten out of her.  On the other hand, her outrageous choices that were extremely fashionable for a flapper in the forties did not work for a fourth grade student who was gangly and not the easiest person to get along with on a GOOD day.  

But I will say this.  Looking back out of adulthood, I am thrilled my mom made such choices for me and forced them on me.  I grew up with a sense of pride in myself because I had to defend not only myself but my family.  And I did so...fiercely.   There were days I did not like it, days when I voiced my displeasure by even coming down with a sudden bellyache to keep myself home from school, but fighting for your family bleeds over into fighting for your friends, bleeds over into fighting for yourself, into fighting for your children, for their rights.  You learn to handle bullies when your mom dresses you for school.  Everything I am I attribute to a headband just like the one pictured here, cat's-eye glasses, and braces.  


Cheers to mothers and daughters!  May the tradition of humiliation surface once again.  It seemed to work to build our characters.  Clink!

(Thanks to  http://weheartit.com/ for the photo)