Ready . . . set . . . write . . .
One of my pivot points was connectedness - developing deep relationships with others. Laundry has been a integral part of my deepest relationships.
As a young person I folded diapers, baby clothes, towels, and other clothes for my sisters when their
children were young. The connectedness of sisterhood.
In college a good friend of mine and I would head off to the laundromat with our dirty clothes and a box of donuts. Now many years later we remain friends. Later when I had access to a washer and dryer and friends of mine did not, they did their laundry at my house. Later still when I didn't have easy access to a washer and dryer another friend blessed me by letting me do my laundry at her house. The connectedness of friendship.
While my father was living his last days and being cared for by my sisters and I and by hospice, my job was to do the laundry. It was one way that I could love him by keeping his sheets and blankets clean and comfortable. The connectedness of the father daughter relationship.
Most recently when my mom's plumbing overflowed and my sister, brother-in-law and I were running around taking care of things, one of my nieces folded my laundry for me. The connectedness of family.
Joining together in the mundane task of doing laundry has been part of some of my closest relationships.
Stop! (whew . . . can't quite believe I did that!)
Nice tie-in! See, the mundane is not the mundane after all. It is the stuff of life!
ReplyDeleteThanks for popping in Mommy, LCSW! I appreciate your comment.
ReplyDeleteLoved the kitty's appearance!
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thanks, Linda. He's my star model these days :-)
DeleteDear Darlene
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting post on laundry. I remember when we went on holidays with a lot of my family camping in Namibia and The Kruger National Park in South Africa, my sister-in-law and I would spent hours at the laundromats at the camping sites doing our family's clothing. Oh, we bonded so well during that laundry sessions. We both had two children and net tired one was on the way. I even offered to to some other family member's laundry at a price of course and even earned some welcome pocket money!
Blessings XX
Mia
Thanks for sharing that beautiful story, Mia! Funny how laundry has a way of bringing us together in many places and in many cultures!
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