Sooooo. I’m not quite sure where to start with this ad. It’s a nice dress that looks carefree and able to hide middle-age thickness. The colors are not outrageously violent. Or vile. Honestly, it does look a bit like a living room carpet. But a nice one.
However, I am pretty sure the writers of this ad and I have different definitions of “mature woman”. My definition is chronologically based; somewhere older than 40 but younger than 90 or so. Based on the model wearing this dress, I’m guessing the writer’s definition is more like “able to control their temper in adverse situations”. Maybe.
The real issue I have with this ad is the promise that the dress will “make my temperament become elegant and dignified.” I actually went and looked up a definition of temperament to make sure it meant what I thought it meant. It did. Just in case you need a reminder, here’s what I found: “The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual’s distinctive character. It can be defined as a person’s particular set of enduring (Long Term) dispositions (Person’s qualities of mind and character) or long-term tendencies to think, feel and act in particular ways.”
Well. So it turns out all I needed was a dress. There is no need for self-reflection, for self-control, for boundaries, for friend’s who ask “what do you think you’re doing?”, for a faith community to mentor me and change my temperament. Just the right dress.
Jesus speaks to the danger of relying on external things whether clothes or rituals or observances, and ignoring the things of the heart. We are in danger when our hearts are not of a holy temperament.
It’s not the dress.
Just Sayin' 