I hope you do not mind. 

This one is going to start on a kind of melancholy note. 

Stay with me, it changes. 

I am at the age when my friends are losing their grandparents. 

They all had wonderful and long lives. 

So, the Funeral Home visits are not necessarily sad. 

As corny as this is, ‘They are celebrations of their lives.’ 

For sure, there is acknowledgement of their loss. 

But there is also lots of laughing and seeing people you have not seen in a long time. 

At some point in the evening, I like to drift off on my own. 

I know my destination. 

I like to look at something. 

You know, it is more than like, it is love. 

There are easels put up around the room. 

Each easel will have a board COVERED in photos. 

Photos depicting their lives. 

Family, travels, homes, vacations, new cars, parties, dinners, sports, well, everything. 

I could stare at these boards for days. 

There is one thing that stands out more than anything else. 

This is the one thing I focus on. 

This is the one thing I love, respect, honour, long for, crave, and adore. 

The way they dressed. 

They dressed up for everything. 

That era knew how to do things. 

A picnic with a pearl necklace. 

A boat ride in a short-sleeved dress shirt and tie. 

Heels while you are doing the dishes. 

Boys at a birthday party, in shorts, knee socks and a blazer. 

Girls running around the backyard in dresses, and shiny shoes. 

A family car ride with Dad wearing a Fedora. 

Mom walking out of a grocery store, pushing a cart in a shawl. 

A walk in a Cardigan. 

Oh, how I long for those days. 

The days when you dressed. 

Dressed as if every day was an event. 

Dressed with effort. 

Dressed with thought. 

Dressed with care. 

Created their own iconic style. 

And had no idea they were. 

I know you know where this is going. 

So, I will just say it. 

I dislike what people slough off as getting dressed these days. 

Do you know why I dislike it? 

I am the one who must look at it. 

We are the ones who must look at it. 

‘F’ that.’

But there is a lesson I have learned from it. 

I use it as my ‘how not to be.’ 

I use it for ‘energy.’ 

I use it for ‘stamina.’ 

I use it for my ‘middle finger.’ 

Their indolence is my strength. 

Okay, a bit of a rant, and sorry for the ‘F-Bomb.’  

‘Once you put on Crocs, you have thrown in the towel.’ 

Insert high-heeled shoe emoji here. 

‘Wear it OUT’