Clothes

Today, while I was washing clothes, I realized something that I'd consider important enough for a blog post. And then I read a friend's blog, and my realization became even more poignant. Not that it's a big deal...but it was cool.

I don't mind washing clothes. However, as I was washing my pink cashmere sweater in the sink today, I thought, "Self, you've just spent 2 hours dealing with clothes. If we hadn't sinned, that would be 2 free hours to do something else with. Also, you probably wouldn't have bought those clothes last year that now fill your closet."

"Wow, Self!" I responded. "All that money could have been spent elsewhere!"

Just out of curiosity, I looked up how much Americans had spent on the clothing industry last year. Rather, I tried. I couldn't find any numbers (anyone out there want to try?), but the clothing industry seems to run into the hundreds of billions of dollars.

I thought, "if we all stopped spending money on clothes, poverty would diminish incredibly."

But we won't. We can't. Thanks to the "original sin" of Adam and Eve, we are born with a knowledge of the value of good and evil. Humans cannot stand creation as God designed it (I'm referring here specifically to our bodies), but must change themselves or hide what they cannot change. Why do we try to change? I have no idea why Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves, but I'm guessing it had something to do with modesty. They may have been trying to prevent one another from sinning yet more.

My thoughts on clothes have changed. Yes, they're still important, but not as a means of climbing the social ladder. They're more of a means to prevent social decline. That's humbling.

I am so excited about getting to Heaven and shedding this sin stuff so I can know only goodness and see God.