We Need More 15/13s

Dating the modern woman requires a lesson in numerology.

There are 10s and 20/20s—supposedly perfect-looking women. Some of these women come from the 36-24-36 mold, which is considered the body measurements of the perfect hourglass figure. Then, you have 5s (average-looking women), 6s and 7s (above-average-looking women), and 8s and 9s (attractive women). 7/11s are "always open," and 304s are what you get when you type 304 in a calculator and turn it upside-down. In Africa, you have the Figure 8 (curvy women), Figure 2 (petite), and Figure 0 (thin). In China, there's the 666 girl. In India, the 420 girl.

It's a carnival of numbers devoted to rating women as if they're prizes to be won on The Price Is Right. As shallow as this is for women, it's also destructive for men. While we are being ensnared by 304s, the woman worth looking for is a 15/13, inspired by Proverbs 15:13, "A joyful heart makes a face cheerful, but a sad heart produces a broken spirit." In short, a 15/13 is a woman who smiles because of her joyful, Godly spirit. That's it. No measuring her hips or flipping calculators.

Yet, in modern America, a genuine smile is considered—what else but—racist.

As evidence, I present to you the controversy coming out of Joliet, IL. The local school district issued a newsletter advertising the upcoming school year. Nice, wholesome newsletter. It featured clip art of a black girl and a white boy, both smiling.

Harmless, right? Wrong. The image received enough backlash online that the school district's superintendent, Theresa Rouse, folded quicker than a lawn chair ordered on Temu. She offered a groveling apology over Facebook. "We apologize for the offensive clip art graphic that was used in our community newsletter. We recognize that the choice was inappropriate and harmful and it does not reflect our values. We take full responsibility and will be more deliberate in ensuring all materials reflect the dignity and inclusivity our community deserves." Hey, if our public schools aren't going to teach kids to read and do math at grade level, at least they can get the "inclusivity" thing right. Right?

Why the backlash? Apparently, it was reminiscent of blackface images used in the 1900s. "There's a depiction of a Black child with large (oversized) white lips. The other children are shown with natural smiles. This was printed in the districts newsletter and mailed to families that reside in District 86. It is similar to the black face depiction of Black people," one black woman said on Facebook.

"That is disgusting!!! What were they thinking?" another user asked. "Where were the editors?"

So now we're told that a smile can be offensive. Let that sink in. A smile. The very thing Proverbs calls the reflection of a joyful heart.

This is Critical Race Theory in action. Every word and every image has to stand in line like a TSA checkpoint to get screened for racial insensitivity. If the girl were depicted with a stern expression, there would have been cries about leaning into the angry black woman stereotype. Had both the boy and the girl had the same expression, somebody probably would have found something else in the picture to be offended about.

This is why Aunt Jemima was removed from the syrup bottle. Not that long ago, Aunt Jemima and the Quaker Oats guy were the universal symbols of breakfast. The activists had Jemima cancelled, probably because she was smiling.

To be clear, I am not making light of the origins of blackface and minstrel shows. They were born out of racism. Aunt Jemima was inspired by the stereotype of the "mammy," typically a black enslaved nursemaid. But to equate clip art from a local newsletter in 2025 with the intentional mockery of enslaved people in 1840 is, at best, absurd, and, at worst, deliberately dishonest.

After the cancellation of Aunt Jemima came the erection of a 12-foot statue in Times Square depicting some random black woman with her hand on her hip. No smile, just sass and attitude. Ahh, progress!

When a culture turns a simple smile into a microaggression, it's not progress. It's regression. It's spiritual decay. The Bible doesn't say, "Blessed are the perpetually offended." It says, "A joyful heart makes a face cheerful."

Our society needs more women—and men—who are 15/13s. People whose joy in Jesus Christ makes them smile because they are free from the bitterness of the world.

We need to forget the 10s, the 7/11s, and the 304s. Forget the blackface outrage, syrup-bottle purges, and silly statues. Let's bring back and celebrate the 15/13s. A cheerful heart and a warm smile.

The fact that we can't handle a smile anymore should tell us something about our hearts and our spirits.

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