Simple Pleasures
I love hanging out the laundry in the nice weather.
It's not just an excuse to get some fresh air and sunshine,
it's good for me. The simple pleasure I take from it gives me a time out from
all the other matters that want my attention and helps integrate me.
Sometimes we split ourselves up into bits. Too much
thinking, too much emotion, too much well, whatever, and we need to reassemble
the bits again to find out where we really are and what we really are
doing.
Hanging laundry on a warm summer day does it for me. It's a
feast for the senses: the contrast between the cool wet textures of the
fabrics, the warm cinnamon scent of cedar bark and the drowsy sweetness of
ripening apples, the quiet clicking of a wren, the steady hum of bees, the
radiance of the colours and the sky.
I wouldn't feel the blessing in such a simple pleasure if I
was mentally writing my next article or nursing a grudge against that fellow
who cut me off in traffic. Taking unashamed physical joy in the activity gives
me the space to bring body, emotions, mind and soul together.
I never apologize for sitting outside to eat lunch, or for
stopping at the side of the road to skip stones in a creek. Not everyone might
agree that getting up at 3 am to watch for shooting stars is a valuable way to
spend time, but I know better. Where else than under a starry night can I know
that I am a part of something timeless?
I love hanging out the laundry in the nice weather. Simple
pleasures like this make me feel more whole.
Stories like these are a regular feature of my free monthly Ezine, Starry Night.
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