Couture or Culture?

I met a girl who was quite intrigued by the fact that I was a Muslim. She began asking me numerous questions like, "Do you wear that scarf all the time?"; "Do all of you wear those big black outfits?"; "Is it true that a Muslim man can have 4 wives?". And then her last question completely bowled me out, "Tell me, is it like a right of passage or part of your culture or something that every Muslim has to own something 'Guess'?" I, at first, thought that maybe I had heard wrong or misunderstood the question, but at the puzzled expression on my face she quickly added, "I mean, every Muslim I know has at least, at the very least, ONE Guess accessory on their person at ANY given time."

"Well," I'd replied with a straight face, pretending to consider the question seriously, "not all," and then at the almost relieved look on her face, I gestured to the white handbag on my arm, "Personally, I prefer Louis Vuitton."

Her expression, needless to say, was priceless.

On a more serious note though, I began to wonder at this encounter. She was right. This Unknown Girl, had somehow summed up the culture we've cultivated. Shirts, dresses, jeans, pants, skirts, tops, underwear, socks, scarves, shoes, cloaks, handbags, wallets and watches... Couture has become a way of life.

And why is that? Why are we so hooked on brands? Why has the type of designer jeans we wear or the type of designer shoes we don't - but have at home in our racks - morphed into the way we define ourselves? We're no longer set apart solely by the religion we follow - we're now recognized by the Culture of Couture. Actually, it's safe to say that in a world that knows so many differences, Couture is the one thing that binds, yet simultaneously divides - everyones heard of them, almost everyone has to have them.

Remember the time when a person was recognised for their strength of character and not the Burberry purse tucked under their arm; when someone was judged not by their D&G shades but by their integrity? I'm not saying boycott them - we all love beautiful things - and there's nothing wrong in possessing them...I'm just wondering, when did it evolve into a Lifestyle?