A message that made my day...

I received this message from Emily Simonson, a senior at Cascade Christian High School in  Puyallup, Washington: 

I read A Year of Biblical Womanhood a few months ago at the recommendation of my
female mentor. At first I was a little skeptical (the phrase “biblical
womanhood” can be a little alarming for any girl who’s been raised in the
Christian church) but now, I am incredibly glad she put the book in my hands.
For me, it was three hundred and fifty two pages of affirmation, which probably
explains why I shared it with those I thought would benefit from it: my best
friend, my Bible teacher, and inadvertently it seems, one of my best guy
friends. He overheard my teacher and me discussing the concept of “Eshet Chayil”
one day after class, and he asked to hear more. Though he hadn’t read the
book, he voiced his support of praising a woman for who she is, not what she
does. We talked about how sad it is that girls (and boys) are judged solely on
their performance, and how we hoped to be good examples to our underclassmen in
this area. This short, five-minute conversation occurred three months ago and
while it was profound, I naturally assumed he had forgotten all about it.

He hadn’t.

Today, over fifty senior
girls received carnations in various hues encouraging them to remember that
“charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is
to be praised” (Proverbs 31:30). None of us had any idea this would happen, and
as a carnation was placed on each desk, every girl’s face began with
bewilderment and transformed to joy. Eshet Chayil became the
buzz word of the day, and as girls discovered what it meant, they were
even more impressed by this random act of kindness. I came to find
out (mostly through coercion) that my friend had been the mastermind
behind the whole project: he picked out the flowers, got our teacher’s
approval, and recruited his fellow senior boys to help deliver them. There was
no ego involved; the boys simply wanted to humbly affirm their female
classmates and sisters in Christ. For many girls, Valentine’s Day normally
involves copious amounts of insecurity and anxiety, but instead I saw many
smiles as girls walked down the halls with their flowers. Today, women of
valor were honored by MEN of valor.

***

How cool is that? I think we should call these "valor flowers." 

Thanks so much, Emily, for sharing this story. 

Learn more about "eshet chayil" in A Year of Biblical Womanhood.
See also: "Women of Valor: It's About Character, Not Roles"