Wash Wednesday

Something Old ~ Something New

Women have been washing their family's clothes and linen since the beginning of time. And while gadgets and methods have changed over the years there are aspects of laundry that remain the same. The need to wash, to dry, to fold and put away.

For many, laundry is most despised chore. One that is never ending and seems to create "mountains" of work. I have many friends that will tell you that laundry is their most dreaded chore, and that they would gladly scrub your toilets if you would come and do their laundry.

There have been more systems devised for helping with laundry. Ways to organize your laundry room. The ideal wardrobe to insure enough clothes but not so many as to erupt into Mount Wash~to~be~done. Methods of labeling clothes so everyone knows who they belong to. Giant washers and over sized dryers. Soaps, softeners, sprays, sticks, pre-treaters and sheets, it now take more products to wash your clothes then to clean your entire house.

I don't understand this bad rap that laundry has gotten. I like to do laundry, I always have. (I bet my mom wishes she knew that when I was living at home. ) There is something meditative about laundry. Maybe it is the routine and repetition of hanging and folding. Maybe it is the glimpse into the lives of those I love. Maybe it is a way to relive the past week, as each outfit brings to mind the adventures had while wearing it. It might just be that I get to slow down, actually sit down, while I fold and get a minute to think, ponder and pray.

A big thanks to Nicole over at Garden Mama for hosting Wash Wednesday. It has given me a fresh perspective on laundry.

As for the Something Old~Something New, the drying rack and quilt are old. The drying rack was a yard sale find. I have been wanting one for a while now. It will come in handy during the winter months, drying clothes in front of the wood stove. The quilt is a family heirloom. I have two of them, and I wish I new a little more about who made them. But I do cherish them and use them. The new is the clothes pin apron. It was quick and easy to whip up based on a pattern in a back issue of Mary Jane's Farm.