Today was delightful, and the delight originated in cleaning, sweeping, scrubbing, scraping paint drops, and meeting people.
Many weeks ago mold was discovered in the basement walls on one side of my church. The board acted swiftly, shutting down the rooms, shuffling programs, and arranging for the necessary abatement and repairs. For months now classes doubled up or crowded into "trailers" for Sunday school and Bible Studies. While it is a blessing that the church has the trailers for expansion, they are cold and drafty and certainly not the best for children and nursery, but they managed as the walls came down and went back up.
Today marked the first day of the move back into the newly reconstructed rooms with their fresh colors and flooring. It was the women's day, doing those things that need to be done before furniture and fixtures are moved back so that the children can use them. Even with a great construction and painting crew that actually knew how to clean up after themselves, the ladies wanted to know for themselves that everything was thoroughly clean.
The call went out to ladies for a cleaning day today. I decided I would go if I didn't get a subbing job. I think the Lord wanted me there because the phone did not ring this morning. Heading over to church at the appointed hour, I found myself one of three. The organizer expressed concern, but it was unfounded, as more and more filtered in throughout the first hour. Eventually, all she could do was direct the helpers to tasks.
The main focus was preparing the nursery for babies and toddlers. The room began completely bare, just the cupboard and cubbies, fresh paint and a new floor. Though it really was pretty clean, we scrubbed the counter and the cubbies inside and out. One lady wiped the chair rail and another the baseboard. The tallest lady used a special soft brush treated with cleaner to wipe off the ceiling. One vacuumed the floor; another mopped it.
My task in the nursery was to do the counter top and the inside and outside of the cupboard. Later I helped with cleaning up the bathroom. The painters had really done a good job, but we found the random inevitable little paint drops, and of course, no scraper was to be found. We tried credit cards and keys. Unlike Minnesota, no one had a scraper in their car. The more we could not find a viable scraper, the more I saw little dots of paint. I headed for the kitchen, surveying the counter for ideas. Let me tell you, a pancake turner makes quite an effective paint scraper.
Everything that could be cleaned was cleaned, sometimes multiple times, as ladies sought something to do. The nursery was back in order and looked so inviting. I sorted toys for big and little children and organized them in baskets. That is meaningful nursery work I can do.
All of this makes the day productive and satisfying, but the best part is that I really met other women, delightful women, as we worked together. Every lady there has a name and I learned many of them - Kay, Gwen, Renee, Dani, Esther, Tracy, and BJ are dear ladies and a lot of fun to work with.
What does this have to do with Lent? Once again I am reminded that as I give - give anything - time, or money, or food, I always receive so much more in return. These ladies blessed me today. I even had the joy of hearing some of their stories and receiving their hugs. Thank you Lord.
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