Clotheslines and Cardboard Boxes

As a child growing up in the 60's there wasn't the assortment of (unnecessary) toys that there are today. My fondest memories are clotheslines and cardboard boxes. Funny that those are still popular to this day. Put a child outside with a clothesline full of laundry and in minutes that child will realize the he or she really can "fly" through those clothes. With sheets as tents and shirt sleeves as boxing opponents the fun never ends :) Add a large box to the mix and you'll have trouble getting them to come back inside!

As a teen, since it would have looked pretty silly for me to be playing in a box and hitting the laundry I progressed to being the "hanger-outter" hanging laundry from inside the house. Living in New Jersey at the time, all the houses were pretty much on top of each other so it was a great way for a nosey teenager to listen to all the gossip :) I also experienced some kind of satisfaction that wouldn't really make itself known until I got much older.

Time went on and I got married. Our first house had a clothesline, 2 actually. I could have hung out of the window but there was a little roof that the laundry would have had to pass over and that didn't make much sense so I had my first experience with actually getting my butt outside to hang the laundry. I liked it! It was a different feeling, being whole with nature instead of just peeking out at it. I could zone out for a moment and watch the birds flying by or the squirrels scurrying up a tree and for some reason that gave me incredible joy.

After a while we moved to Cape Cod and this is when I started really getting "clothesline crazy" . We rented our first place and my clothesline consisted of an umbrella style one sitting in the center of a cable spool. Not my favorite but we didn't have kids yet so it was sufficient for the time. After a year we moved into our first house and hub BUILT me a clothesline. It was wood on both ends with 6 or 8 long clotheslines and it was cemented into the ground. Our first son was born during this time and it was his turn to "fly" through the clothes.

When 2nd son came along space started getting alittle tight and we drove around town looking for neighborhoods that appealled to us. I remember vividly driving through a neighborhood and my husband saying "They don't allow clotheslines there" GASP! Forget that neighborhood. Clotheslines are as much a part of my being as the air I breathe! We found a nice house, near the bay and I am back to hanging clothes from inside the house. Why? I'll tell you ...

I have almost completely lost my mind when it comes to hanging clothes. I have to admit that I use my dryer more than I want to but that is progressively getting better. I have 2 clotheslines coming from my bathroom/laundry room window out to the unused swingset. If the weather is favorable (I'm a huge fan of Weatherbug) I could be hanging clothes and spending time admiring the stars as late as 10 p.m. I can fit almost 3 loads of laundry on those 2 lines and I do! I have an umbrella style clothesline that I usually reserve for towels and I have 2 Mrs. Pegg's Handy Lines in the house. One downstairs and one up for the kids stuff.

I have often heard people who garden say that it makes them feel closer to God. Personally having bugs crawl all over me would make me feel more like I'm visiting with the guy downstairs! But I get that feeling from hanging laundry. The energy savings and other benefits take a back seat to my relationship with God although they all compliment each other. I see it as God showing me that he cares - "You wash, I'll dry" - and it's a good feeling. While I'm looking out the window I still see lots of birds and squirrels but I have the benefit of being above the ground too so I am often "visited" by chipmunks and bunnies. It's when I thank God and talk to Him and I always feel better after I have my time with Him. It saddens me that some people who feel the same way are being told that they can't connect with God in their own way because someone else doesn't want to look at clothing off of a body.

My hope is that, someday, everyone gets to experience the peace that comes along with hanging laundry and the joy of playing in clotheslines and cardboard boxes.

NP