I will be the first to say that I am not materialistic[物質(zhì)主義的]. My friends label[貼標(biāo)簽] me as a goody-goody[偽善者，假正經(jīng)的人]; my parents say I am conservative[保守的] and modest[樸素的] when it comes to clothes. I dont wear bikinis[比基尼]， and none of my skirts or shorts end above my knees. That is my choice.

So why， why did I feel so tempted[被引誘的，有興趣的]？ My family and I were in Target， and there it was， waiting. A skirt， specifically[特別地] designed not to cover anything. It was tan[棕褐色的] and looked like something one of those anime[日本動漫] schoolgirls would wear.

I checked my purse. The skirt cost $10. I had the money. I could buy it. I imagined walking into school and my friends jaws[下巴] dropping. Guys would ask me out， and I would be happy. I could buy it—no， I should buy it.

I showed my mother. She was surprised but said it was my decision. My sister looked on enviously[羨慕地].

I went into the dressing room to try it on. So sure was I that this skirt would change me， somehow make me not what I am but what I wished to be. I slid[滑落] my jeans off and put it on. Now for the decisive[決定性的] moment. I looked in the mirror. There I was—a geeky[愚蠢的，令人討厭的] girl in a Superman T-shirt and sneakers. My glasses fogged up as I started to cry.

The skirt did not change me. Though it fit well and might make me look good in the eyes of todays world， it was not me. I am not a girl who flirts[賣弄風(fēng)情] or wears cool clothes to fit in.

I took the thing off and slid back into the comfort of modesty[樸素]. My mom knocked on the door. “Emily， are you okay？”

I wiped away my tears. “Im fine.” I looked in the mirror again and saw a blond skinny girl with dorky[愚蠢的] glasses and a ponytail[馬尾辮]. I saw myself.

我會是第一個說自己不是追求物質(zhì)的人。我的朋友們給我貼上了“假正經(jīng)”的標(biāo)簽;我的父母則認(rèn)為我在穿衣打扮方面頗為保守樸素。我不穿比基尼，也沒有任何一條裙子或短褲的長度在膝蓋以上。這是我的選擇。

所以為什么？為什么我會覺得如此動心？我和家人在塔吉特百貨商場購物，而它就在那里，等待著。一條短裙，一條專門設(shè)計(jì)得很暴露的裙子。它是棕褐色的，看起來就像是日本動漫里的女學(xué)生會穿的那種短裙。

我查看了下我的錢包。這條短裙賣十美元。我有足夠的錢，我能買下它。我想象著自己穿著它走進(jìn)校園時，我的朋友們驚掉下巴的呆樣。男生們會約我出去，而我會很開心。我可以買下它——不，我應(yīng)該買下它。

我把它指給媽媽看。她很是訝異，但還是說我可以自己決定。我的妹妹在一旁羨慕地看著。

我走進(jìn)更衣室試穿。我很確定這條短裙能改變我，在某種程度上讓我不再像我，而是變成一個我希望成為的人。我換下牛仔褲，穿上裙子?，F(xiàn)在，決定性的時刻到了。我看著鏡子。我站在那兒——上身穿著一件超人T恤，腳踏一雙運(yùn)動鞋，一副傻樣。我開始哭泣，眼鏡鏡片模糊成一片。

這條短裙并沒有改變我。雖然它很合身，可能在當(dāng)今世界的審美看來，它讓我變得漂亮，但那不是我。我不是那種賣弄風(fēng)情或者穿著很酷的衣服去迎合世界的女孩。

我脫掉裙子，換回舒適樸素的褲子。媽媽敲了敲更衣室的門，問：“埃米莉，你還好吧？”

我擦了擦眼淚，回答道：“我很好。”我再次看向鏡子，看見了一個金發(fā)碧眼的瘦削女生，戴著傻乎乎的眼鏡，綁著馬尾辮。我看到了真正的自己。