My favorite part of doing the laundry by far is emptying the lint trap in the clothes dryer. The amount of lint collected after two or three loads never ceases to amaze and delight me. I carefully remove this delicate tapestry of pet hair, dirt and dust mites and contemplate it for a moment before surrendering it to the trash can. The heavier the soft layer of grubby fluff, the better. It is indisputable evidence that the invisible bad stuff has been removed and all is right among the clean and warm tangle of clothes that is waiting to be folded.
Lately I have been thinking that I need a spiritual lint trap.
In an age of medical advances, this innovation has to be on someone’s radar screen. It would, of course, be smaller than the lint traps that are made for clothes dryers but still powerful enough to get the job done. I would probably have mine installed at the nape of my neck, which is where all the nasty stuff seems to settle these days. This location may require some assistance for cleaning it but I know Dave would do this for me as a clean spirited wife is in his best interest. I would do the same for him. And the brothers.
The spiritual lint trap is where all the unnecessary and harmful thoughts would collect. There are the obvious suspects like needless stress and selfish tendencies but the greatest good would be capturing all the troubles that swirl around our psyches, invisible and undetected, until they come together and form one giant layer of yuck.
Once each week, the lint trap would be emptied and so would my fears about how fast time is moving, my frustration with elusive dreams, and my uncertainty about the future. All my worries about bad things that have yet to happen, my envy over lives I wish I had, or the resistance against that monotony that often envelopes my days, swept up and out in a single motion. Left behind would be a warm tangle of clean and healthy affirmations – gratitude, patience, and love — that feed my soul.
In conversation with many friends these last few weeks, I’ve come to believe that we are all in need of a spiritual lint trap now and then, especially in the depths of winter when captivity breeds more unnecessary karmic dust than any other time of the year.
So what might we find in your spiritual lint traps, MoB readers? Since this innovation is not yet on the market, feel free to empty yours here. The more we collect, the softer the collective angst.
A great weekend to all!
