I'm always impressed by classy people. My Grandma Bentley, even at 95, manages to be one. She's actually more stylish than I am. Somehow I missed out on that gene. I remember my mission president's wife, Sister Grames, explaining to me that anything you do, you should do it right. She described a woman who donated cookies for something, and brought them neatly arranged on a beautiful plate with a gorgeous bow tied around the whole thing. The presentation, according to Sister Grames*, was as much a gift as the cookies were.
I believe in this wholeheartedly. But I can't seem to make it happen. This weekend, I watched as the other members of the R.S. presidency arranged food for two completely different meetings, and both times it was PERFECT. It was presented beautifully. The food was really good. There was a nice variety, so everyone found something they liked. And there was plenty of it so nothing ran out. Everyone enjoyed it, self included. If all the meetings I went to had such great food, I'd go more willingly to all these meetings! (On the other hand, I'd also be fatter, so it's probably best that they don't.)
In this whole two-meeting production, I was the one who didn't notice that there were hardly any plates left in the enrichment closet (which is arguably my domain, though I don't like to admit it), so they were all mismatched and came in a variety of sizes. And half of them were Christmas plates.**
I'm not kidding when I say that I missed out on the classy gene. If you ask me to bring brownies to an event, I'll be the one to show up with them still in the pan. They'll probably be uncut and I'll ask to borrow a knife and then proceed to scoop them out, still hot and falling to pieces, surreptitiously licking my fingers as I go. The only thing I can say in my defense is that the brownies will probably at least be gooey and yummy. That much I can do. But this ability to present things beautifully just is not in my repertoire of skills.
I don't say this to whine about my lack of tact, or even to fish for compliments or protests that no, really I am a classy person. I've learned to accept this flaw in myself, and I figure I'd rather be the tactless person who at least is somewhat reliable than neither. It could be worse, right? No, this isn't something I'm losing sleep over.
No, the reason I'm writing this is just to tell all you classy people out there (you who were shaking your heads in amazement at my buffoonery) know how impressed I am with you. Even when I try, my efforts always fall short. Your ability to be classy is truly a gift. Know that people like me look up to you and are impressed.
*I'm worried that this might somehow sound snarky about Sister Grames and this is not my intent at all. So I want to make it clear just how much I love this woman. She was my second mother in Japan, and I consider her and President Grames family. Just for the record.
**Delilas, kind soul that she is, pointed out to me that it was good to use up all the odd plates every now and then.
***And if you're reading these footnotes, don't you just agree that Audrey Hepburn is one of the coolest and classiest of all people in the world? How did she do it? Does anyone NOT love her?
4 comments:
There's a great discussion of classiness here: http://www.feministmormonhousewives.org/?p=3070 (just as an aside, I think you'd enjoy fMh more than exponent - they're generally a little less "apostate" seeming over there, but thought-provoking over a wide variety of issues nonetheless - like this one of classiness!).
And yes, I adore Audrey Hepburn. I wish I looked in my clothes like she does in hers. Granted, it'd help to have someone design them specifically for you. Yup, I guess if I daydreamed much, it'd be of being her. Or Katharine Hepburn. Another totally classy lady.
I thought the plate sizes were on purpose. Here was my thought process: If I get a big plate and only fill up a little bit, it looks like I'm dieting. If I get a small plate and fill it up totally, it looks like I'm pigging out. Well, i'd better get a big plate and fill it to the top. It's mother's day, I'll just go for it.
And how is it that classiness is so picky? My sister has so much, and I'm left in a classless void.
I think most people see me as the epitome of class, so I just can't relate to what you were saying at all. Okay, no more jokes. I'm always impressed with people who have a great presentation, but I always remind myself that even if the things I do to help out don't necessarily look good, at least they usually taste good. I figure if I'm bringing someone a meal or a dessert to an activity, I'm already going out of my comfort zone, so it should be okay if it isn't the classiest looking dish. :0)
i adore audrey hepburn. absolutely adore her.
and i totally think brownies in a pan are classy. :) hey, they're better off in a pan than non-existent, which is exactly what my brownies are. (yes, that was a confession. i have never in my life made a batch of brownies. true story.)
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