Dressed for Stress

The Scripture says that the Sabbath -- Sunday for us, of course -- is to be a day of rest. In our house we are careful about not lifting our ox out of the well... but in total, Sunday morning is almost unquestionably the most stressful day of our week.

My wife has to be at church for the 8:30 service, and then I'm responsible for getting the rest of us breakfasted and dressed and out the door well before the 10:30 service. That probably doesn't sound so bad, although it's complicated somewhat by my daughter's lengthy list of, ah, guidelines regarding what she will consent to wear. In recent weeks the degree of difficulty has been further ratcheted up by my need to attend both our services -- something which not only shortens the timetable significantly but also puts both kids in a foul mood.

My presence at the early service usually means I'm sharing in the music leadership, which adds to the tension. Then there's our weekly worship PowerPoint presentation, which I produce once a month, but which for whatever reason I feel responsible for even if I haven't touched it; I can never quite relax till that's all over.

I thought I had seen it all in terms of the stress Sunday morning could bring, until this past week: the annual picnic Sunday. You see, on picnic Sunday we are encouraged to dress picnic-appropriate, and that may be harder for me than all the other facets of Sunday put together.

I was born a preacher's kid and I've been in church all my life, which means that I was raised in the era when everyone was expected to dress for church. Gentlemen wore dark suits and ties (and hats, and topcoats); ladies quite often wore hats and gloves. While I can't say I have upheld that kind of standard -- I rarely wear suits at all, usually opting for a sports coat and slacks, and in the summer I go really wild and leave off the jacket -- it is a supreme act of the will for me to leave the house without a tie.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a snob about other people. Suits, t-shirts, shorts, whatever. I like it when people dress a little better than they would to go grocery shopping or fix the car, but mainly clean and covered. But hey, if you have to pull something out of the laundry hamper to make it to church... welcome (please sit over there)! For me, though, you might just as well try to get me to write lefthanded or converse in German as to feel comfortable dressed down for church.

I was already mulling my sartorial plan when my wife arrived downstairs in a (dressy) t-shirt and slacks, which for her on a Sunday morning is like showing up in her bedroom slippers... so I knew I was going to have to go below and beyond my usual. I struggled, but finally selected a nice pair of shorts and a short-sleeve sports shirt; this is, to the extent I have one, my personal style these days (summer version), albeit not my summer church style.

I was beginning to come to terms with this new version of me when I found, on the bathroom floor, a pair of slacks and a t-shirt. Then I was faced with the possibility that she had changed to something nicer; then I'd really feel like a goober.

So now I'm feeling uncomfortable on two counts. I wavered... and gave in. I ran upstairs and changed into real pants -- what my wife would call golf pants, but still, legitimate slacks -- and a sports shirt. Still no tie, still feeling a little like I'm wearing a skirt or a swimsuit or something.

In the end, naturally:

• my wife did dress down -- the clothes I found were from yesterday
• we had people in shorts AND people in jackets & ties
• the picnic was "rained in", so I would scarcely have been noticed had I been wearing a 3-piece pinstriped suit

I'm just glad it's an annual picnic.