the gown, the spa, and the movie

do you ever have a day that ends up being almost the perfect day- but you didn't' plan it that way at all? which i think might make it even more perfect.  that was saturday. the day of the gown, the spa and the movie. fun, relaxation and challenge.

i haven't bought a gown in years. what is a gown anyway? a fancy dress? does it require jewels?
maybe i just bought a beautiful dress- but gown sounds so much better than dress- whatever it is, it's beautiful. it's long and thin and dark chocolate with  wrappy pieces that can make about 4 different looks - it's by bill hallman  (http://billhallman.com) a fabulous atlantan designer (check him out). our kids went to preschool together and the store is down the street.  i tried on about 5 different dresses and got to feel like a movie star for about 20 minutes as they fitted them and tied them and added jewelery and hand bags and made sure they fit right.  it was fun.  i was completely outside my normal world and my comfort zone. but totally fun. i can't wait to wear it.

then my friend and i decided to check out this korean day spa.  it was hysterical.  which is a strange way to describe a spa.  it was also very relaxing and calming- but very funny.  first of all, it was in duluth ga.  i wrote about duluth a while ago- it is office park land- i kept getting lost in office parks- and sure enough- the spa was in an office park.  it's called jeju and although it's called a day spa, it's open 24 hours- slightly suspicious.  there was a designated clothed common area where there were many saunas and a pool and a korean restaurant, and then there were gender specific areas for hot baths and saunas and steam rooms where you could be naked.  in the woman's naked area there was a section for massage and salt scrubs and the women who did the massaging were older korean women wearing black lace underwear and bras.  hysterical.  and why? i mean i'm glad they weren't naked too- but why not have them in clothes? and why lace? it made me wonder what the guys side was like.

then from there i came home- mike made  us lemon drops. delicious.  and then we watched invictus.

invictus is about nelson mandel and rugby.  it's about a wise man leading wisely. it's about doing the right thing in very hard times.  it's about leading by example. it's about turning the other cheek.  it's about beautiful transformation and redemption. seeing a man spend 27 years in prison and emerge to lead his country - to move them toward equality, to practice justice in his moment to moment living- so powerful. seeing an underdog rugby team win the world cup- aided by inspiration and the faith of their leader and perhaps a poem-  it made me cry- in a good way. it also made me want to read and study about south africa and about mandela, and to focus on this for teaching this week.  so today zoe's copy work was a quote from nelson mandela:

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.  The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

there is so much that we are afraid of. that i'm afraid of. that she's afraid of.  do we live in that fear?
it's like the bird on the shaky branch- her song is triumph.

so i was inspired by the day.  to enjoy and laugh at the little things- like hot dresses and old korean masseuses in black lace- but not be lost in them. to lead more wisely. to lead by example. and to be reminded of the injustice all around us and to not run from it- to not be afraid.