The Wrapunzelution has officially begun! Walking around Park Heighhts on Shabbos, the streets are dotted with colors that we are often only treated to in a bouquet of flowers. It’s not everyone yet, but it’s everywhere.
Every day as Andrea and I pack and fold Tichels, answer emails, make plans to do Wrapunzel shows around the US we wonder out loud what is this? What shift is happening that is making people open to challenge the stauts quo in head coverings?
The true answer, like anything Divine remains a mystery, but we’re seeing some things that may surprise you and help us to understand the depth of what’s going on.
Did you now that about two thirds of Wrapunzel ladies are not Jewish? Did you know that many of those women are not even of any religion? Did you know that Wrapunzel has a forum, beyond the website where women of all beliefs who cover their hair get together, share tichel ideas and support? And did you know that in June, Wrapunzel is traveling to Dearborne MI, a city that is predominantly Muslim to participate in the World Head Wrapping Expo?
To your average orthodox Jew this is a mystery. Why are all these women interested in this mitzvah? Why would anyone want to cover their hair if they didn’t have to? And why would we want to bring a Torah commandment to the general masses?
The answer is simple and it has nothing to do with the tichels we wear, but rather the joy that accompanies them.
Said a wise man: how you approach one thing is how you approach everything. So many people approach covering your hair as a prohibition. Something that is a burden. As if the Torah says “You should not reveal your hair". But the Torah doesn’t say that.
The Torah speaks positively to us on this personal topic and says “Walk modestly with Hashem.”
Everything we’re asked to do is for our benefit. The prohibitions in the Torah give us the parameters so that we don’t self-destruct, and the commandments give us tools to live an amazing life. When we’re told to be modest, it’s a gift.
Hashem is saying, “Here, my daughter, my sweet precious one. This is how you should comport yourself so you’ll maximize your time here. Be discriminating in what you wear and dress your beautiful soul in clothes she’ll feel comfortable in.”
Approaching the mitzvah this way opens us up to realizing its incredible benefits. In our community, we’re so used to dressing modesty that we don’t even realize the power we’re harnessing as we walk through the world. Our experience is so different from your average woman, yet some of us have never experienced anything but this type of respect so we don’t know the difference. We take covering our hair for granted. In fact, women from around the world have shared their stories with us.
“I started covering my hair and my husband looks at me in a whole new way.”
“My friend featured me on her blog when she was describing a real lady.”
“Once I began to over my hair, I got in touch with my femininity and I finally like myself.”
“I feel so strong and confident, as if I’m wearing a crown when I walk about the world.”
“I was scared to wear a tichel to work but I’ve gotten nothing but compliments. ”
“My boss is treating me with new respect.”
What’s really going on is that our age old mitzvah of tznius is challenging the media’s deflating message of body image. It’s triumphing over the secular notion that the amount of male attention a woman gets, is what gives her value and lets women know that their value is innate and eternal.
Have you ever seen a flyer for a women’s retreat? Cake decorating, flower arranging, scrapbooking Women love beauty and creativity. Tichels are allowing women to tap into the creativity that they thrive on. It’s a natural extension of that energy.
Times are changing, the world is coming to a place where people want truth. Within our community conversations are happening daily as we unravel the systems and standards we’ve gotten tangled in and try to rectify them. We’re challenging the system, opening new schools, approaching education differently. We’re open to more types of people, open to new wisdom and collectively pushing for a real Yiddishkeit.
We want healthy relationships, a lifestyle that people can afford. We want stereotypes to end and a new type of achdus (unity) to begin. (It has!) We want to improve in tefilla (prayer) and emunah. We want inspiration and we want Moshiach!
And that’s where Wrapunzel comes in. With Hashem’s loving help, He has given us the opportunity to build bridges, to interact with the world way beyond our community and to experience a taste of a time when differences are celebrated and all roads lead home. We’re experiencing the infinite wisdom in this mitzvah and it’s leading us to experience the infinite connectedness of every single one of Hashem’s creations.
You can get Wrapunzeled online at wrapunzel.com or join us at our Pre Shavuos Sale June 1 at 9:30 am at The Perlman Home - 3501 Pinkney Rd.
