The Easter Dress

My mom used to sew a lot when I was growing up. Mainly, it was because we didn't have a lot of money to spend on clothes, but I think it was also because her mother had done the same for her, and it was a way to be frugal and save for a rainy day. Whatever the reason, I loved it when my mom would sew something new for me. 

One of my friend's moms was constantly sewing things for her. She spent all day, every day (it seemed like) sewing something for one of her two daughters. Her father loved to quilt, so I think he liked that his wife sewed so often because it meant he got the scraps for his quilts. My friend, of course, thought it was lame that she had to wear homemade items to school and Church. I was actually a bit jealous. 

There's one particular Easter I remember. Mom worked so hard on a beautiful green and white Easter dress for me. Maybe I should clarify that Mom didn't actually enjoy sewing. It was definitely not her first choice of extracurricular activities. But she did it anyway, mostly because she loved her family and didn't want them walking around in shabby clothes. 

Anyway, Mom finished this Easter dress. It had pretty little sleeves and a tie at the back with cute, little white buttons that sealed the deal. It took her hours and hours of work. In fact, she may have worked on it for weeks before Easter. I don't remember any of that, but I'm sure Mom probably does! 

I wore it to Church on Easter Sunday. My friend also had a new Easter dress on that her mother had made for her. We were young and stupid and compared dresses by swirling them in the halls at Church and generally making fools of ourselves. Little did I know, her mother actually felt a "competition" between the two of us girls. My dress flared more on the swirls or had a longer tie or better button holes or something. Whatever it was, her mother was highly annoyed that I had such a pretty Easter dress. 

My friend and I were oblivious, but the next Sunday, she showed up with another newly made dress. It was decked out, but that's about all I remember of it now. I just remember thinking, "Ooh, pretty." And that was that. But it wasn't, actually. My friend said her mom made her wear that dress after spending the entire week on it because she needed to look perfect in a new dress at Church. And how dare that Katie and her mother try to "out do" us with their white and green Easter dress? 

We couldn't have been older than five. In fact, it was probably more like four, but somehow her mom had made this competition out of the two of us, and the only way she could "win" the competition was by making a bigger, better dress than the one I had. Thankfully, I didn't realize any of this was going on. It wasn't until later that Mom filled me in and told me the story of the Easter dress. I believe my response was to laugh out loud. Really? Mothers do this kind of thing to their children? And for what? 

In the end, my friend began to refuse wearing the clothes her mom made for her. Even when high school dances came around and her mom was standing scissors, needle, and thread in hands to make her a formal dress, she would beg her dad to take her shopping. He'd take her every time. I think he was tired of the competition, too. There was some sort of irrational hold on her mother to make the "perfect" dress. 

I, however, have never forgotten that Easter dress. It had nothing to do with the competition. It had nothing to do with the dress my friend ended up wearing to Church the following week. The reason I loved that dress is because my mom made it. I knew it was special, I knew it took a lot of time and effort, and I knew it came from the heart through pin pricks on fingers and curse words at the sewing machine. It was a dress of love, not of duty or competition. That was, and still is, my favorite Easter dress.