Today I found myself in complete bliss. I have often found that making furniture, cleaning, painting, and running help me zen out, but while I was cleaning pair after pair of nasty old shoes, I was completely taken in by my work. For a small catch up into my personal life, I just moved to Los Angeles, CA, and am now working for a very cool nonprofit that happens to also be founded in the Catholic faith. I will not dissect the relationship between God commanding us to do good, and us doing something in the name of God for x, y, or z- because I am completely infatuated with all of the lovely people I work with(they are all very lovely Catholic people- and this is more with the Zen of existence right now).
I have always found myself very taken with Catholicism and with the difference between the Catholic bible and the New King James Version. For instance, there is a story I heard this week about a woman name Veronica who wipes Jesus's face as he is carrying his cross. She happens to be a holy woman( nifty little detail). I also think many Catholics believe this clothe still exists somewhere with Jesus's image still intact.
Many people have asked me recently, " How do you sort dirty clothes all day??! I would be so bored!" I respond, "I love my job XD!!" Truth be told, all of the clothes aren't dirty. Some are brand new. And honestly sometimes people donate their bags of garbage. I cut open three bags of trash this week. Obviously very rude or a gross mistake. I have done tons of customer service jobs since I was 14 years old. The best part of my job is that I don't have to deal with people who are angry about tacos, or ridiculous miniscule details concerning food, or coffee, or coworkers who don't do their jobs, or angry crazy power tripping bosses, or boredom.
I work with a great cast and crew. We all do our jobs and are grateful for the work, and the living we make helping the homeless of LA and the not so middle class families that shop there. I love the methodical categorization and I love examining clothes. From the fabric they are made of to the way they are sewn, to the size and shape and small details. I love to imagine the lives of the people who wore them before they were donated to us, or the personalities that made each article come to life. I often wonder if someone died in that pair of pants or packed them hoping to go on a trip and some how the bag got lost and eventually sent to us. I wonder if someone was conceived or or born in some of our clothes. I think I love doing this because in reality these things must be the case.
I know some readers will be very grossed out, but maybe I should be a nurse one day because the body doesn't really gross me out too often. I wear gloves and my hands are often dry from washing. To me there is so much beauty that we over look day to day. From the lack of gratitude we find in living and working, to the details that are precious to me. The unraveling hem of a skirt, the one baby shoe that lost its match, the discarded coat that still has much life in it. The very funny thing is- normally I almost despise these material things. I could never again work in a clothing store like Wall-Mart or Dilliards. The thing that makes these clothes precious is that they already have stories. I meditated all day on why my work- the work that is quite similar to so many other jobs I have had- makes me feel elated now while often in the past I was miserable.
I realized knowing the organization exists for the good of the community gave my brain free range to think directly about how my service was helping others. I did this so much so that the future of the clothes began to fade into stories that the clothes had already had. I feel extremely connected to other people as I touch all of the articles of clothing and in that sense I feel connected to God. I am extremely grateful for my job and all that is has and will continue to bring me. I am still in the process of Peace Corps Application- and this job could not be a better sense knowing and feeling I am exactly where I belong.
Peace and Love,
Mas
