I’ve never forgotten a brief exchange I heard between two women at a former church. This was before Caroline and when I was teaching a Sunday School class on “Calling vs. Clutter – The Joy of a Purposeful Life.” 

The women were probably both in their early 50s. One of them worked at a local Christian college that isn’t known for being conservative or promoting the traditional (Calvin). She was frustrated because some of the young women she was responsible for weren’t interested in doing the things she thought they should be doing as women pursuing a college education. She said in a clearly exasperated tone, “They told me they just want to stay in their room and watch Christy. It’s like they don’t have any higher aspirations than getting married.” 

I didn’t say anything because I was younger and didn’t know the woman well enough. I wanted to ask her what she thought that might be communicating about those young women and their dreams. I thought it was telling. How many young women were in college because they were expected to be there? How many would have rather been pursuing a home life? How many would have preferred to be doing something they considered more meaningful instead of going to another class required by the college? How many of them  (even at that not-very-traditional Christian college) really just wanted a husband and home?

Christy was on television in 1994-95. Several years later, during the heyday of the simple living movement, these young women were still drawn to its themes of faith, community, serving others, loving children, working hard, and, yes, finding the love of your life. Today the landscape looks a bit different and young women are yearning for cottagecore, Grandmacore, or some version of the tradwife life. While those particular ideas might be social media driven (and even contrived in the case of the tradwife thing), they still reflect something fundamental in women. 

A generation later, going to college is now no longer the expected norm in America. Many young women know they don’t want a career fueled by striving in the marketplace. They have no desire to spend their life in a cubicle. They certainly don’t want to be in debt for it. They want children, a home, and a garden. They are drawn to real community, working with their hands, intentional mothering, and a home-centered life. 

It’s interesting to look back at that comment over 20 years later. I wonder what those young women ended up doing. Did the Christy phase pass? Or did it reflect what they truly wanted out of life and were they able to find it? I hope they did. I hope each of them found a godly husband, enjoyed rearing their children, and are reaping the rewards of their faithfulness to a worthwhile dream.