Modesty is the Best Policy

Donna Barclay has a new dress for the school banquet - and her father George takes one look and says she can wear the matching jacket over it or stay home. Donna wears the jacket... until she gets to the banquet, where she slips it off and suddenly every boy in the room notices her. By Monday she's soaking up compliments, dodging a warning from jealous Shannon Everett, and secretly buying an even skimpier outfit to wear when she meets Shannon's boyfriend at Whit's End. But the boy never shows - only a furious Shannon, back with her boyfriend and ready to cut Donna down to size. A shaken Donna gets some gentle wisdom from John Whittaker about what our clothes say about us, and how God looks at the heart while people judge the outside. When George arrives and sees the outfit, Donna owns up to the sneaking around, and father and daughter agree there's no need to rush growing up. Then again, with Jimmy asking to borrow money to get his ears pierced, some lessons may need repeating.

Found on It All Started When... Album 13 · 13 episodes

The run See every episode

0186 The Conscientious Cross-Guard A by-the-book middle school crossing guard must decide whether to abandon his post or face down the school's meanest gang alone.

0187 An Act of Nobility A young American traveler in a small foreign kingdom discovers he bears an uncanny resemblance to its prince - on the eve of a coronation someone is plotting to prevent.

0188 The Courage to Stand A girl's shot at joining the popular cheerleading crowd hinges on one party - and one condition her mother won't bend on.

0189 No, Honestly! The town's least trustworthy kid becomes convinced a charming newcomer is up to no good - but who's going to believe Rodney Rathbone?

1 of 2 0190 Moses: The Passover On his son's birthday, a workaholic father chases the boy into an Imagination Station adventure and finds himself trapped in ancient Egypt on the eve of the tenth plague.

2 of 2 0191 Moses: The Passover Trapped in different corners of ancient Egypt on the night of the first Passover, a father and son each discover that finding their way back to one another will take more than their own strength.

0192 Modesty is the Best Policy When her father vetoes her trendy new dress, a teenage girl discovers that turning heads at school is easier - and more complicated - than she expected.

0193 A Tongue of Fire When aspiring kid broadcaster Jimmy Barclay takes career advice from Odyssey's most notorious shock jock, his quest for laughs puts his friendships - and his show - on the line.

0194 A License to Drive When Connie is challenged to prove she has what it takes to be a teacher, her first pupil is the last person she'd choose: Eugene, who needs to learn how to drive.

0195 Father's Day When Connie's estranged father breezes into town for one night with an invitation and a suspicious hesitation, she hatches an elaborate scheme to rekindle her parents' old flame.

0196 Harlow Doyle, Private Eye When a girl at Whit's End confesses she's lost her faith, Odyssey's eccentric new private eye takes the case - determined to find it like any other missing item.

0197 The Midnight Ride At Whit's End, Whit sets the record straight on Longfellow's famous poem, telling Marsha the fuller, stranger, and truer story of Paul Revere's midnight ride.

0198 Treasure Hunt A charity treasure hunt turned water-pistol war game collides with a manhunt when an escaped convict stumbles back into the one town he swore he'd never see again.

Featured characters

Minor characters & crew 1 more roles

1 supporting role

Shannon Everett (Ellis) Stacy Alcorn

Made by

Chris Anthony Host Paul McCusker Writer · Director · Producer Dave Arnold Sound Designer · Producer Chuck Bolte Executive Producer

The story

Read the full synopsis 2 min

Donna Barclay and her father, George, tell this story together, trading the narration back and forth and cheerfully correcting each other's memory of how it all began. As they agree in the end, it starts one Friday evening when George knocks on Donna's bedroom door, gets no answer over the blaring stereo, and walks in - only to be shooed out by a mortified daughter who is getting dressed for the youth banquet at school. Downstairs, Mary Barclay reminds her flustered husband that Donna is growing up and is nervous about the evening. But when Donna appears to show off her brand-new dress, George is stunned - it looks like a slip to him, tight and flimsy and far too skimpy. Donna protests that all the girls dress this way now, but George stands firm: she can wear the matching jacket over it or stay home.

Donna wears the jacket to the banquet, where she sits sweltering and stewing until she talks herself into taking it off. Suddenly everyone notices her, especially the boys, and her old friend Jack Davis stays close by all evening. She never tells her father what she did, but the attention follows her to school on Monday - compliments, older boys who used to treat her like a little kid, and a sharp warning from Shannon Everett, whose boyfriend could not keep his eyes off Donna all night. Feeling grown up at last, Donna secretly buys an even skimpier outfit, sneaks it to school under her jacket, and agrees to meet Shannon's boyfriend at Whit's End, brushing off Jack's honest warning that the boys are now talking about her in ways she would not want.

The boy never shows. Instead a furious Shannon does, announcing that she and her boyfriend are back together and telling Donna she is not so special. A shaken Donna pours it all out to John Whittaker, who gently explains that the way we dress tells people something about us, and that the Bible says God looks at the inside of a person while people judge by the outside - which is why it urges us to dress modestly instead of chasing fashions that draw attention to the wrong things. When George arrives and sees the outfit his daughter bought behind his back, he takes her home, more hurt than angry over the sneaking around. Donna apologizes, and father and daughter agree there is no need to rush growing up - it will come soon enough. Jack turns up at the door with Donna's forgotten books and a tactful suggestion that the mall might take an exchange. And just as George settles down for a moment's peace, Jimmy Barclay bounces in asking to borrow a couple of dollars so he and the guys can get their ears pierced. George's answer says it all: "Wrong."