a new space

This is my new office.

It may not look like much (especially with this photo taken by my fancy phone camera) but it is my office space. It's the first office I have had, really. My job has changed some this year and quite honestly I am thrilled about it. I have worked at camp the past three years mostly cleaning and a few other odds and ends. To supplement my very part-time work I substitute taught when I could and a few years ago even worked for a friend in a local coffee shop for a little while to make some extra dough.

My heart has been camp (for what seems like forever) so I have been thankful the past three years for even just my cleaning job and working weekend retreat groups that come through... however, amongst my thankfulness I have also squeezed in some hard-core complaining. It's true, though I hate to admit it, I whined about cleaning... well mostly the first two years- and some of you have been unfortunate enough to be around me to hear it first hand.

I truly loved working and living at camp, I did. But I would find myself just in tears periodically so disappointed and overwhelmed that I had to clean showers, toilets, rooms and such, again. After some time I realized my real angst was being alone. It was physically and emotionally difficult for me to be alone so many hours in the week. I tried to take the time cleaning to just listen to music and be alone with my thoughts (something that so many people would LOVE time for) I mean, cleaning strangers' hair out of drains never got to be fun , but the alone time could be really wonderful... right?! Yea, not always the case for me. I mean, yes for a bit- but I, apparently, thrive on being near to people.

God (through a sermon in church one Sunday) gave me a bit of a whining wake-up call a little more than a year ago. My complaining attitude sucked, frankly, and I needed to do something about it. My pastor one Sunday talked about Philippians 4:13... but not maybe in the way you would think. We are so used seeing that verse on inspirational posters, like with an extreme rock climber in the background and an emphatic "I can do all thing through Christ, who strengthens me!" Or, on a coffee mug to start your day, saying something like, "you can do anything today! just believe in yourself! Phil 4:13" But this verse, in scripture, comes from a man who was imprisoned at the time. I don't know that rock climbing was on his mind. Our pastor challenged us to reflect on this verse as saying "I can do all things, even the toughest, most monotonous, most thankless or unsatisfying, or painful things- because I have the strength of Jesus Christ." That was not exactly the mantra I was starting my cleaning-days with. And so, I tried to turn that around and quit that stupid complaining I had made a habit of doing.

For the next year I got a cleaning partner and the company was such a blessing. I really loved having someone to talk with for hours as we cleaned those buildings again and again. Still a very part-time job, but very wonderful to have a friend and the reminder to be contented knowing I could do it because of strength from Christ. Now, I still clean, alone sometimes... but I also have that little office. I have an office because I am full-time! I know, it sounds crazy maybe to be excited about that, but I told you, this camp is my heart. I did enjoy (mostly) the flexibility and freedom of working part-time. I tried to remember what a blessing it was to make no money but have time to do almost whatever, really, because I averaged about 15-25 hours of work in a week. Now I am your 9-5 kinda girl but I am in a job that has me doing a lot more with conference groups that come to camp and also (and the most exciting part) I do a lot more with planning and prepping for the summer camp season! love.

So, that's my new space. And it comes with one serious bonus perk- my gigantic Dr. Claw chair. I could be sitting in it and you may never know that I am there... kind of like Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget. Remember him? And his creepy cat? His huge chair always hid his identity. I am sure I can use this ridiculously large chair to my advantage some day... Those are what my cleaning gloves look like, too, by the way.