Dirty Laundry: The Chilling Saga Continues....

Yes...what you see above is real.  It hasn't been photo shopped or enhanced in any way.  That, my friends, is an empty laundry basket.  I finally got the guts up and did it!!!!  Please...save your applause until the end.

There were 5 loads of laundry in that bad boy.  Well, technically there were two loads of laundry actually "in" the basket and the rest either delicately balanced on top or scattered throughout my closet (okay...and maybe some in the living room too).  I nicknamed the pile the "leaning tower of laundry"...not too creative, but I wasn't planning on getting too attached.

I know that you all can't wait to hear about what I found at the bottom of the laundry basket.  So, without further adeu, I will tell you all the sordid details (I swear, you people just won't be satisfied until you know everything about me, will you!?).  I sorted the pile starting with the perimeter and worked my way in.  I approached with caution.  I fired off a few warning shots before I got too close to the actual pile....I mean, it's DC....anything could have been in there.  It's been three and a half weeks...I could have found mice, rats, roaches, a  little old lady, a puppy!, Edward Cullen (what!?  It could happen!), anything! 

But to my surprise, when I carefully pealed back the edges of the (stolen) towel, I found that my clothes weren't really that bad!!!!!  Can you believe it!?  It's a festivus miracle!!!  All I found was that the very center of the wad had just a few little tiny specks of white fuzzy mold....I would have preferred a puppy, but at least it wasn't the hazardous waste I thought it was going to be.  In fact, instead of throwing my clothes away, I decided to wash them, and they turned out totally clean and fine!  It's like the prodigal t-shirt.  I was so happy to have the clothes back that I thought were unsalvageable, that I did all the laundry AND I ironed. 

YAY!....everybody loves a dirty laundry story with a happy ending. 

When I called my mom to tell her (brag) about finally doing my laundry without the assistance of a hazmat team, she reminded me of something.  She said, "Well, Kate (my family calls me Kate), it's probably because you washed them off with the water hose before you put them in the car."  She was right....I had already washed the chunks and muck off before I crammed it all into a ball and let it bake in my car for a few hours.

Okay, things are gonna get a little bit deep here for a sec...bare with me.

It was when my mom said this that I realized what God was trying to tell me (I know what you're thinking....Katie, you could put ketchup on your Cheerios and find a way to turn it into a message from God.  And you know what I have to say to that?  You're darn tootin'!  I look for God in everything and everyone and I ain't ashamed! )  Just like I sat here for 3.5 weeks avoiding my ever growing pile of laundry in order to avoid something I thought was disgusting, but actually ended up being pretty clean....I do the same thing in my life.  I'll use the example I used in my previous blog....Just like the crap thoughts I had been carrying around for years and was too scared too deal with them because I thought they might possibly be true....when I said them out loud to my friend...I realized that I already didn't identify with them anymore.  They didn't bring up any pain, hurt, anger, or fear.  They didn't belong to me.  YAY!  I can talk about my past as if I am telling someone else's story...and do you know why?...because I AM telling someone else's story!!  I'm not that girl anymore.

So, my point here is....if there are things in your life that you are too afraid to face because you think they are going to be too hard or too bad to deal with....have FAITH!  Believe that God has already gone ahead of you and taken care of it.  If there is sin or things in your life that you know you need to get rid of...give them to God.  Ask for forgiveness.  It's never as bad as we think.  God loves you too much to have you weighed down by negativity, sin, shame, and guilt...hence the reason for giving His son's life so that we wouldn't have to.

I think dealing with this pile of laundry was even more daunting due to the fact that these last few weeks have been pretty tough and exhausting...at work and in my personal life.  I didn't want to have to deal with that on top of all the other stuff I was dealing with...so I just didn't.   I have been so stressed that I have locked myself out of my house three times (with a hefty fee each time), left my Jeep parked on the street for a week instead of in the parking garage (as anyone that lives in DC or has parked in DC for any reason will attest to that fact that parking fines here are no joke.  I now owe DC $1 million in tickets....I shoulda bought a condo instead!  lol!), and have just been all around blah-tastic.  Just when I felt like God must have gone on vacation (I hear Bora Bora is nice this time of year) and left me to take care of things all by my lonesome...something awesome and amazing happened.  I was standing at the water cooler at work when one of the ladies that works with me walked up to me, looking a little uncomfortable, and said, "Um...It is done."  I looked at her funny, because I wasn't sure what the heck she was talking about....had I forgotten that I had asked her to do something for me?  Then she reached out, put her hand on my arm and said, "Whatever it is that you are worried about, or that you are going through...God wants you to know, it is done.  It's already taken care of."  For just a little background....this wonderful lady and I don't really know each other.  We happen to work in the same department, but that's about the extent of it.  Can you imagine the courage it took for her to come up to me and say that to me, not knowing how I would take it?  Well, I'll tell you how I took it...I wrapped my arms around her and started crying.  Yep, I did. Right in the middle of the department.  I didn't care.  God was reaching out to me through this amazing woman and that is better than any gift anyone could ever give me.   So, God and I have been dealing with some stuff this week.  I feel like a new person!! AMEN!  We don't always have to have this earth shaking experience in order for God to renew us, he can do it in the blink of an eye...it's not about how we feel....but....just in case I was too stressed to miss it....God did shake the earth!!! (I had to fit a DC Earthquake reference in here somewhere, wink!)

Let the applause commence!

Loves,

Kate

PS - Thank you to everyone for all of the amazing emails and comments of support, appreciation, and encouragement!  I can't tell you how much I appreciate your stopping by to check out my blog!  Blessings and love to you all!