Ordinary Life

The ironic thing about this blog is that I had several new subscribers after my last post. A post that to be honest, could have been my last ever post about L’Abri. I’m not sure when or if I’ll get to go back. Not because I think this pandemic is going to go on forever, but I feel like I had this neat little window of open space in my life before I dive back into grad school and it’s getting smaller and smaller as the shelter at home orders seem to be extending. Therefore, I wondered should I post more about my time at L’Abri? Do I have enough pictures for that? (Let’s be honest half of you are just here for the photos).

Then I wonder why I worry so much about creating quality content. This blog is 95 percent for my mother, and she’s not exactly a harsh critic of my work. 

I could mix together thoughts from L’Abri and my current quarantine life. People need hope, and maybe just maybe I’m a hopeful person. Then again I remind myself that this reaches maybe 4 or 5 peope and I’m no Annie F. Downs… although life goals. 

In the end, you’re reading this and I decided to write it. So here we are. 

Laundry

My favorite work crew to get assigned to at L’Abri is laundry. I’m legitimately sad that I’m not hanging sheets on clothes lines with pegs right now. My mom joked that my dad could hang some lines in the back yard to make me feel better. Although, considering how yellow our vehicles currently are… I’m going to say the pollen would definitely ruin the cleanliness of sheets. 

There are multiple reasons I love laundry crew. One, it feels super productive. You start with full baskets of dirty stuff, you put away piles of clean sheets you folded, and you empty the irony basket. 

Two, it’s like a huge puzzle/game. How many loads can I do in three hours? What’s the most efficient way to hang things? Which rooms have dry stuff to fold? How much can I get done before the first load buzzes? If it’s a sunny day, it’s extra fun because I get to be outside and I get excited to see how fast stuff dries. How can I rotate things so they dry the quickest? It’s also a stretching game. Can I reach this line without falling over? (Basically it makes my nerd brain happy). 

Three, I get to work alone which means podcast/music/silent reflection time. I.e. much needed introvert time.

I probably also like knowing this is where all the different types of towels go, this is where we keep the sheets, and knowing when my own clothes will be clean because I was the one to wash them.  I definitely feel good when I tell someone I got you, when they need a specific thing washed quickly. I should also put in a warning that my friend Heather mentioned that her laundry experience didn’t live up to the hype. She mentioned something about being alone all morning in a damp and cold basement was kind of creepy.

Overall though, there’s just something oddly nostalgic about hanging up laundry in the sunshine. When your background is the alps and there’s a gentle breeze, it’s a built in formula for peace. I say oddly nostalgic because hanging clothes in the sunshine isn’t something I did as a child, but I do sometimes think of all those historical fiction books I read as a kid as I’m doing it.  

Quarantine Life

I’m only on day four of being home, so I’m definitely not an expert, but here’s some of the things I’m doing to try and stay sane and hang on to things I’ve learned at L’abri. Disclaimer: I started off my tim at home by sleeping 12 hours, waking up hungry dazed and in need of a shower, but sobbing and having a panick for a couple of hours before addressing those issues. Switzerland seperation anxiety hit me hard. Oddly enough, after I showered and ate some food, I felt better. My emotions still confuse me sometimes. 

Now that I’ve leveled out a bit:
1. I go for a walk everyday around my parents yard/house.

2. I try to sleep a close to normal amount of hours. 

3. I limit the amount of time I watch tv and spend as much time outside as possilbe.

4. I read my Bible and a book everyday.

5. I check in with my L’Abri friends and call friends I didn’t get to talk to as much when I was in Switzerland.

 6. I try to find something to clean. (So far it was making my room feel less like a time capsule from high school and then scrubbing all the moss off the propane tank). 

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7. I’m not making concrete rules or goals for my life. I don’t have to be productive with my quarantine. 

8. If something random peaks my interest I go for it. For example, I decided when I was looking at some wild flowers in the sun, that I wanted to make an arrangement out of the flowers in the yard. I also decided to try water painting again… and well it didn’t go great but it definitely passed the time.

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Instagram Worthy Quote of the Day

I’m currently reading Bob Goff’s book Love Does and this line really stood out to me.

“I used to be afraid of failing at something that really mattered to me, but now I’m more afraid of succeeding at things that don’t matter.” 

This stood out to me particularly as I’m reflecting on my time at L’Abri. I think of my desire to be a counselor, and my wish to live an abnormal but God centered life. I think of the books I have been reading: books about resting, (The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry) about radically loving people, (The Irresistible Revolution) about a different sort of church and community. I think of how L’Abri embodies loving people well, living by faith, being minimalist, being a community, cherishing the little things, celebrating the little things, seeking knowledge and wisdom, living by rhythms. I wonder how can I live that kind of life outside of L’Abri. 

I think a small part of it is realizing that for me this quote rings true. I’ve spent a lot of time worrying about and eventually succeeding at things that don’t really matter that much, and now, well now I hope to be spending more energy on trying to succeed at the things that do matter. Which honestly means to the outside world or even to myself my new goals might look a little weird, and my decision making process might be a little different than it used to be. Maybe that’s a good thing though. 

Well that’s all for now folks. If you have any fun quarantine ideas or questions about L’Abri, let me know. 

Love you, bye