Over time, things change – people change, feelings change, and customs change. One of these very much changed customs is respect.

When you think of old-fashioned ladies, like the ones we see in pictures in history class, what comes to mind? Long, floor-length, plain dresses. I also think of how different their styles were and how different what they considered “modest” was.

In my opinion, they were a bit extreme. It would be such a hassle to wear floor-length dresses all the time, not to mention inconvenient and uncomfortable. They could have shown a bit more skin and still have been modest. Though we seemed to have moved too far in the opposite direction – now a little less skin should be shown.

So many girls don’t respect themselves. They treat their bodies like something to view instead of something to treasure. During the summer when we go to the mall, what is practically every girl wearing? Booty shorts.

Shorts are definitely a necessity, considering the temperatures in Texas during the summer, but do shorts really have to expose half your cheek to keep you cool? Definitely not.

A big reason girls dress like this is to attract attention from guys. They want to show off their figures and like being looked at. Though it is natural to want others to view you as attractive, some things should remain covered.

The truth is, you don’t have to be scantily clad to be beautiful. As cliche as it is, you’re beautiful the way you are, and how what’s inside is important. Society has drilled into our heads that we must dress provocatively to look cute and fit in, showing off all that we possibly can, but that is just not true. We should respect our bodies. Dressing immodestly only attracts the wrong type of guys – guys with bad intentions – and makes you look trashy and makes people have a negative opinion of you.

The type of guy girls ultimately want to be with appreciates modesty and respect, so we should try to portray ourselves the way we want them to see us.