Funny Moment In My Life On This Side Of The World #758 (give or take a few)

It was a very windy day here in the Ancient City. Nothing out of the ordinary as we are known for our 120 days of this. But "windy" doesn't even begin to capture the hurricane-like gust forces that were whipping through the village. (Move over Chicago, the battle for your nickname is on!)

Anyway, there were many times throughout the morning when I would go outside our room and my head covering would fly off. No big deal. I quickly recovered and only a small portion of my dignity was lost.

But then came my shining moment.

I was walking to our outhouse carrying a heavy pail of water in both hands when, all of the sudden, a gust of wind passed through my legs and lifted my ankle-length skirt. Over My HEAD. Oh yes. You read that correctly. Without warning, mind you. And before I knew it, I was having a very "Marilyn Monroe Standing Over the Subway Grate"-like moment. (Of course, reality would prove that it was anything BUT.)

You see, for one, the possibility of me actually being able to free up my hands quickly enough to stop my skirt was non-existent. (Remember: two heavy pails of water.) There was no grace in this. No Kodak moment to be captured. Just me in all my glory.

And before your mind goes to far with this image...my one saving grace was the fact that we wear pants under our skirts. (Praise God!) Never before have I been so thankful for 15 layers of clothes in 100+ heat.

Now, luckily for me, I don't think anyone saw this in action. I quickly scurried off to the part of the wall where no one could see me, dropped the pails of water, and pulled down my skirt. I tightened my head covering while I was at it too and then moved along to my destination, as if nothing had every happened.

And to think that I try so hard to be culturally appropriate.