Washing Clothes

I woke up a bit earlier than usual yesterday morning, and decided to use that time to get started on the huge mountain of laundry waiting to be done.  I put my shoes on and went outside to go to the laundry room, and on my way I ran into Norma.  I greeted her and asked how she was doing.  "Bien" She smiled but looked a bit stressed, and then asked where Jake was.  When I asked what was up, she started talking about the washing machine "no funciona".. meaning, the washing machine is not working. Oh no, I thought.  The washing machine already has an electrical problem where it gives off small shocks if you touch it while it's running. We have still been using it with caution while we wait for them to send someone to fix the problem. But now we won't be able to use it at all anymore until it's fixed.

My big mountain of laundry suddenly didn't seem so big anymore as I thought about the MANY mountains Norma must have waiting for her to tackle.

{Norma is the hired laundry girl for Casa de Paz. She is a beautiful, hard working young lady who does an amazing job keeping up with washing clothes for all 30 or so kids!}

Right now there is only 1 washing machine for her to use - the one that we bought for the orphanage only a few months ago.  We don't have a washing machine in our own home, so we also use the same one.  This machine runs almost 24/7 and hardly gets a break, so it didn't really come as a surprise to us that it was already having problems.  But trying to get things repaired around here is not always easy.  Having warranty or Guaranty doesn't seem to mean a whole lot around here.  Exchanges and returns are almost never an option; once you buy it, it's yours. And if you want something fixed, you gotta fight for it.  This means calling and reminding them everyday until they send a repair man.  

Well it has been a couple weeks now of waiting, and laundry can only wait so long.  We are very grateful though for the pastor's family for being kind enough to offer their machine for us to use in the meantime.  Theirs is a much smaller one though and is not able to handle the amount of laundry Norma does each day, so she is still WAY behind.

This morning I looked out the window and saw Norma and a few of the girls sitting outside with washtubs of soapy water. They were washing clothes by hand.  I decided to the same and washed some of our clothes as well. 

As I watched the girls scrub and chat away, I noticed that they were smiling and laughing, they seemed to be having a great time.  It's amazing how having the right attitude about a situation changes everything! Instead of complaining, they worked hard together and got the job done, all the while enjoying each other's company.  1 Corinthians 16:14 came to mind "Do EVERYTHING in love". When it's done in love, it's done with joy and a positive attitude.  I'm definitely going to try to learn from and practice the girls' great example. :)


Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34