We finally got some clothes lines up to start drying laundry outside again. I'm not sure what it is about this, but as I pin the laundry to the lines and step back to see all the color swaying in the breeze I get the most content feeling. For me this goes well beyond the energy savings that we'll have or even the environmental benefit of line-drying. I have this warm homey feeling that comes over me and brings a surprising joy. I can't say that about all chores. Maybe it comes from connecting with the thousands of women before me over the centuries that have done the very same thing. I even recall using my aunts round laundry hanger as a fun swing before I got to heavy for it, that was a sad year. This is not only cross-generational, it's cross-cultural. Women the world over share in this long-lasting tradition of tapping into nature to help get a little work done. It simply feels good to go back to old-fashioned ways of living, in this case at least. I don't think I would feel quite so homey and joyful if I had to wash all that laundry with a tub and an old washboard!
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