Think of Audrey Hepburn. What girl wouldn’t trade places with her in an instant? She has all the charm, sweetness, and loveliness that any girl could possibly want. But nowadays, girls aren’t trained, told, or even encouraged to be like the gorgeous Audrey. Instead, our society has “kicked classy and well-spoken ladies to the curb. Think about it. Have you ever heard of Nancy Alcorn and her international organization that freely houses thousands of at-risk females? Or Cathleen Black, the “First Lady of American magazines” and one of Forbes’s 100 Most Powerful Women?...Of course not! Let’s face it—it’s high time some extraordinary young women brought self-respect, intelligence, and true beauty back to the female gender.”
The media is saturated with stories about Britney, Lindsay, and most recently Miley. They are the ladies getting the attention, and many girls emulate them—making themselves one of the “Stupid Girls” by climbing up on tables in bars, doing lap dances, wearing six-inch heels paired with a fabulous 3 inch miniskirt, texting guys all night (this is the best case scenario), etc…
We know this: our culture is obsessed with these Stupid Women. But this book isn’t about what the problem is; it is about what we are to do. Who are we going to be? “Sure,” Christy writes, “it’s easy to laugh about a pop star’s latest run-in with the law over lunch with our friends and read about the latest hook-ups in Us Weekly while we’re at the beach, but when all is said and done and the next generation of young women grows up not knowing anything different, we are going to have a problem on our hands. Intelligent and refined girls are by far the exception these days—shouldn’t it be the other way around?”
Christy gives some fabulous tips about how to be a Smart Girl and give women a good name—and the next generation of women a chance at modesty and respectability. This is what she says…
1) Keep your chin up and your skirt down! Have some self-respect. Don’t go giving it all away to any guy at any time. Don’t party like crazy. And please please please, don’t wear pink alligator skin miniskirts.
2) Speak with politeness, respectfulness and gentility. Get rid of the “lol”s and “OMG”s. Some ways to do this? Read the dictionary between commercials! Read more for fun! Tape yourself talking and listen to how you sound.
(side note: Christy puts in this little poem-esque selection. I found it delicious food-for-thought:
“What your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
What your character, for it becomes your destiny.”)
3) Know your stuff. “When we’re unaware of history and current issues, it’s difficult to be knowledgeable on any subject,” Christy says. Are you able to hold an intelligent conversation about the economy or the government or the situation in China?
4) Word hard—set high goals for yourself. Have a “smart girl list” of what you want to accomplish. Things that could be on there? Learning a new language. Volunteering at a new charity. Getting involved in local government.
5) Choose your friends wisely. And then make sure you keep the good friends around! Add some humor to your relationships. Create stronger friendship by having a regularly scheduled date, whether it is for coffee and a manicure or swing dancing or watching a movie.
6) Let the guy do the pursuing. Think of the Notebook and how timeless a love story it is. The guy waits around for the girl for years and years—he builds a whole darn house for her!! He goes crazy (literally) FOR HER. And years later, he still wants her with all his heart. That is what every girl wants—don’t lie to yourself. Plus, that is what guys want. They like it when a girl isn’t easy to get, they like a challenge! Soooo… DON’T make the initial call to a guy. Do NOT creep him online or text him about your feelings. It will only turn him off, so play it cool , girl :)
7) Dress to impress. “People always remember a chic and classy outfit, so when in doubt, dress it up.” On the subject of clothes, she also says: Go for solids (over big prints) if in doubt—they will make you look slimmer. Don’t buy clothes a size too small and make it your goal to fit into them. And save your legs for the beach. No one’s legs look good without a heavy-duty massive cleanup effort involving strong chemicals and oh-so dangerous razor blades. Also, keep safety pins on hand and try to keep those bra straps hidden!
8) But remember, whatever you are wearing, a smile will conquer all. “”If you should happen to get caught looking not-so-good, just flash your pearly whites.”
9) Have a good attitude with food! Have your cake and eat it too. Cooking more helps develop a healthier relationship with food. Try combining food with helping others!
Christy inserts this little vignette into the book at this point: “A friend of mine has an eight-year-old daughter who recently asked to go on a diet! If not for our own well-being, we need to find a balance and healthy self-image for those who will come after us. . . Only when we are happy and at peace with ourselves can we begin to be a positive influence on those around us.”
In sum, “our culture is in desperate need of real women with brains, beauty, and selfrespect—women who aren’t afraid to take risks, dream big, and order dessert.” If being a Hepburn does not appeal to you right away by its own merit, we “have living, breathing incentive that provides even more ammunition for us to turn in our glitter eyeshadow and plastic tiaras—the generation of girls coming after us. While most of us grew up in a blissfully naïve world of Saved by the Bell adnd My Little Pony, our daughters and nieces are going to have to contend with Girls Gone Wild and Bratz dolls.”
We MUST do something, for “it’s easy to sit around and criticize Paris, Britney, and Lindsay all day, but until we get out and make a change ourselves, complaining won’t do us, or anyone else, a bit of good.”
Be an Audrey—you have it in you.
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