I will not soon forget one dinner conversation I had around a year ago. While discussing clothing, a girl made an off-hand comment about liking shorter dresses because they felt rebellious. Although not particularly approving of her rebellion in the first place, I felt that dinner was much too short to correct such a problem and focused instead on the idea of immodesty as rebellion.
"For me," I said, "dressing modestly is quite sufficient rebellion."
She did not understand what I meant right away, and I guess you might be wondering as well, so I will explain. By wearing very short skirts, she might have been rebelling against her parents. But she was actually choosing to look just like everyone else by doing so. Instead, I choose to dress modestly even if it is in rebellion against the standards set by modern fashion designers. It is much more satisfying, in the end, than merely rebelling against one or two individuals.
You see, it is not a bad thing to want change. But change is not a good thing in itself, either. Revolution is either good or bad depending on what we are overthrowing. If we uproot high standards and morality, we will live to regret it. Perhaps we should instead choose to exercise our independence in favor of feminine modesty rather than in favor of the mysteriously over-sexed androgynous figures drawn by fashion illustrators.
After all, conservatism is the most revolutionary option.
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