Washing dishes for Lent

Our dishwasher broke this week. So, we’re washing our dishes by hand.

Normally this might not seem like such a big deal. Many people don’t have dishwashers, and we always wash some of our pots and pans by hand. Somehow during this pandemic time, though, the little crises have this way of looming much larger.

As I stand at the sink scrubbing and rinsing dishes, I remind myself how fortunate we are to have a home, hot running water, food to enjoy, and two children who consume an ongoing stream of meals and snacks. We are blessed to have dirty dishes to wash.

I was thinking that my plan for Lent had been to do less—and now I have another chore to fit into my day. Still, it occurs to me that this is another opportunity to talk and listen to God. He knows that I’m often more attentive when I’m doing something with my hands but when my eyes and ears and mind are open. Maybe He knew that was just what I needed—a task to keep me occupied so I would open myself up to Him.

As I reach for a sponge and turn the water on to begin, I think of the words of St. Teresa of Calcutta: “Wash the plate not because it is dirty or because you are told to wash it, but because you love the person who will use it next.”

So, I think of the people I love, and I keep washing.

I also think about the dishwasher itself. We haven’t even had it two years. But those have been some difficult years to be a dishwasher—at least around here.

I can’t believe the number of dishes we use during a typical day. We’re home almost all the time, and we have boys who are growing faster than a pile of dirty dishes on a busy school/workday. Thanks to pandemic eating, we have been running the dishwasher two, three, or sometimes even four times a day. No wonder the dishwasher succumbed. We have asked so much of it over the past year.

Then I think of what has been asked—and continues to be asked—of each of us during that time. Maybe, like the dishwasher, we all need a rest. Maybe this is a Lent where we could pause and figure out what is exhausting us. Maybe it’s time to recognize we are doing too much and ask for help. Maybe, if your dishwasher is failing you, it’s time to get some paper plates.

This isn’t how I pictured Lent this year. And that’s OK.

As we walk our Lenten journeys, it can be easy to feel we’ve stumbled and failed in all we took on for Lent. But I try to remind myself that daily life is asking so much of us right now. God loves each of us deeply, and He is walking with us every step of the way. If these days are difficult on their own, without additional sacrifice, maybe we can take comfort in knowing that all God really wants is for us to be close to Him, to open ourselves up to His love, and find rest in Him.

Copyright © 2021 Catholic Review Media

 Print