One of the prettiest sights you can see on a warm summer day, is a line full of clothes blowing out in the wind. I love it when the wind causes the sheets to billow out to their fullest extent and watch the shadows as they play on the lawn. I love the smell of the towels and sheets that have hung out all day long. There isn't a dryer sheet that can compete with that.
I can remember my grandmother hanging out her clothes and how she told me that she enjoyed doing it. I never understood that until I became an adult. There is a peacefulness about hanging out your clothes, piece by piece and pin by pin. My Nanny had the old fashioned push clothes pins (oh what I wouldn't do for some of those!). I have bamboo pins (they're wonderful and strong), but I've bought Dollarstore ones that are terrible.
There is an art to hanging out a line of clothes or so I found out the first time I hung out clothes for my Mother. I just grabbed whatever my hand fell to and hung it out. There were face clothes hanging next to jeans and towels next to underwear. It was a disaster. My Mother made me take the clothes off the line and begin again. First on the line were the long things, like jeans, then towels, and yes, all the towels got hung together in a row, then the shorter things like t-shirts and shorts which were followed by underwear and face cloths. I had to admit that once the clothes were hung out the 'right' way it did look better and it was something I could be proud of.
There is a certain amount of pride associated with doing something right. I am not a perfectionist, thank heavens, they are usually quite miserable people because the world is not a perfect place, but I do like things done right. I like my towels folded a certain way and I like them placed neatly on the bathroom shelf. I don't like it when someone is in a hurry and just shoves them in. That just makes more work for me. Maybe you think I am just being fussy and perhaps I am but I believe God expects us to do things decently and in order too. I believe that He would be pleased with a job well done.
I'm glad my Mother made me rehang the clothes that day and taught me how to do it right. It does look nicer and when I am out driving and notice a line of clothes blowing in the wind I see that other people's Mothers have taught them the same way. A line of clothes is a simple thing: one of the simple joys we have to enjoy.
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, Ecclesiastes 9:10
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men Colossians 3:23
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