On the 12th day of OneDress.

Today marks 12 days wearing one dress.  Even on Christmas.

I've included a few pictures as promised.  But I have to admit that actually "wearing" the dress hasn't been nearly as hard as I thought.  I've actually rarely noticed the fact that it's been the same dress. The change in me has been more much on the inside than on the outside.

I've journeyed with 12 women so far: Sarah (as in Abraham and Sarah), Tina Fey, Judy Garland, Lucille Ball, Eve, Pochahontas, Amelia Earhart, Sally Ride, Donna de Varona, Erma Bombeck, Nefertiti, and Abigail Adams.  And I've journeyed with myself...embracing my womanhood and my one dress.

I've thought about the journey of woman.  What she started with, what was taken away with one bite of an apple, where that left her, where she's overcome, and what there is still to conquer...

We've come a long way, yet there is still a lot left to fight for.

Perhaps part of my strong conviction about womanhood comes from having a baby girl.  I see what the world has to teach her about her identity. No thanks.  Been there, done that.  Don't think it's worked for any of us.  And the fact is, the pressures we grew up with, they seem to have gotten worse.  Drugs. Plastic surgery. "Reality" TV. Women half naked on every magazine cover. Sex trafficking. No thanks. No thanks. No thanks.  We deserve more.  We were created for more.

We were not created to be dominated and abused by man (or other women).  We were created to be adored and honored by man, to be a teammate.  To run the race, too.  To be a firework, if you will.

And so, during my 12 days, I've only been convicted further and inspired further to help create an opening.  I see this 31 day adventure as just another chance to let my little light shine.  It's never too late to be a firework.  And out of my shooting colors, my bug-a-roo has the opportunity to explore her colors.    And with the world she's heading into, her colors will need to be bright.  To outshine what is dark and deceptive.

We all have something in us that makes us want to leave things better than before we got here.  I think that now, as women, we have a distinct and creative opportunity to do just that.  And what better way than Fourth of July freedom?  Lettin' our lights shine. Rockin' our way through the sky.

It will come at a price.  The journey will not always be pretty.  It will involve enemies and challenges, possible failures and setbacks.  But none will compare with what is ahead, what identity will be forged in the midst of turmoil.  Light is always needed most when it's, well, dark.

So, ladies, tally ho.  Here we go.

P.S. Apparently I'm not the only one thinking about women.  If you have about an hour, I think you may LOVE this message.  I definitely enjoyed it...It's from one of my favorite speakers...Kris Vallotton.
Watch here.


And, of course, I will leave you with lyrics...they make my world go round.


Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting through the wind, wanting to start again?
Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards, one blow from caving in?

Do you ever feel already buried deep?
Six feet under screams but no one seems to hear a thing
Do you know that there's still a chance for you
'Cause there's a spark in you?

You just gotta ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

'Cause baby, you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

You don't have to feel like a waste of space
You're original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you're reason why all the doors are closed
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow
And when it's time, you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It's always been inside of you, you, you
And now it's time to let it through

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon

(corresponding song: Firework by Katy Perry)