I often hear about and see advice for people who have a hard time saying “no”…
THE STORY
…People who apparently agree to anything and everything that is asked of them. Perhaps this overuse of “yes” is simply because they are kind and generous human beings with a wicked sense of adventure; perhaps they have a fear of disappointing others or maybe it’s due to the perceived pressure to always respond in the affirmative. Or maybe it’s just because they know how to enjoy life and don’t want to pass up on any opportunity for possible enjoyment that comes their way.
I am in no way judging those who oblige the wishes of others; I have simply never understood them. You see, I have always been a “no” girl. Not always I suppose. I do remember a time when I more often than not would respond to the majority of requests and opportunities with a resounding “yes”. Over time though, something happened…something changed.
When I started taking a long hard look at my life a few months back (which led to choosing two guiding words, journaling and all sorts of positive stuff) I realized that one of the things that needed to change was my lack of openness to new experiences. I needed to stop immediately responding with “no” every single time an opportunity presented itself. I needed to think before I flat out turned down requests by people around me. I needed to stop telling myself no. I needed to stop shutting myself down because of others in my life who had shut themselves down. My behavior had become a reflection of someone else’s.
So many times over the last several years I would think “Oh, I would like to do that…” or “That might be something fun to try”, but inevitably I would respond to myself with a “Mmm…maybe that’s not such a good idea” and then end up sitting on my ass at home wishing I had said yes to myself and done the fun thing regardless of what anyone else thought. I had stopped being true to myself. And that is no longer gonna fly.
Over the last month I have booked a vacation in Key West (the last vacation I was on was in 2008…seriously, wtf?), I bought tickets for myself, my son and daughter to see Cher in April and I bought tickets to see Bill Engvall in February with my husband. I agreed to chaperone the middle school zombie run next month on a Friday night…I might be weird, but that sounds like a good time to me, and I agreed to have a student teacher in my classroom.
And guess what? I did all of these things without my typical hemming and hawing and ultimately not making a decision…which in essence was a decision… a decision to say no. I said “yes” to fun. I said “yes” to new experiences. I’m saying “yes” to living my life and “no” to simply continuing to exist in the world of “no”…
THE OUTFIT
This American Eagle high low skirt is a piece that I picked up last Summer. Originally I paired it with a choker tee and my Birks, but since it’s not exactly warm enough for Birks right now my trusty otk boots did the trick. As I often do with a warm weather piece, I made it more “wintery” by grounding it with black in both the boots and the sweater.
For additional warmth as well as visual interest, I layered the high low skirt over one of my tulle skirts. I think the little peek of tulle at the bottom adds a pretty touch. Due to the layering over tulle, a belt was definitely necessary as the tulle added a whole lot of extra “fluff” at the waist and hip area. The belt reined it in nicely and added a little toughness to the potentially too sweet look of the pink tulle and floral print.
THE TIP
Tulle skirts are a pretty stand-alone piece, but they are also perfect for layering under skirts or dress for some extra visual appeal. Depending upon the fluffiness of the tulle, you might want to add a belt to rein it all in.
THE LINK UPS
Check out the weekly link ups I participate in for even more fashion and style ideas…
Skirt: American Eagle (Similar); Tulle Skirt: Amazon (Similar); Sweater: Target (Similar); Boots: Amazon
