Dishwashing Service

God really has His own way of teaching us the right way. Simple things or ordinary circumstances can really be a good avenue to feel that God is around, continuously leading us to become like Him. I just had lunch with the sisters, enjoyed the food and our conversation. Ordinarily after the meal, we (priests) will just leave the used utensils on the table and the sisters will later take care of them. However, I was trying to be polite (or maybe trying to prove a point again?) since washing the dishes, of all household chores is the one I excel doing. Meaning no big deal for me, peanuts! Alongside with that is the fact that ‘we (priests) should not be served, but should serve, or at least be always available to serve.’ False humility maybe but that is how I’ve felt I need to do, so I took my utensils with me and washed them myself. A sister saw me and immediately cried out to leave them there, “Father, I will take care of them!” Sisters are always in competition to serve, especially to serve the priests. I guess this is the point I am getting at, ‘please, do not spoil us!’ But to my dismay (in a funny way) the sister’s insistence of taking care of the utensils was not because of the issue of service but she thought I don’t wash the utensils clean enough. Ha! As if I was not born with ‘not a silver spoon in my mouth, but literally ‘dishes’ in my mouth.

 

I ended up washing the utensils twice with warm water, double checked them for any minuscule stain, before placing them in their proper place anyway. I hope that loveable sister will approve my ability to wash dishes and let me do it next time with no hesitation whatsoever.

Breaking the continuity in our life is one thing that is ‘easier said than done’ to adjust ourselves with. We rather do it our own way rather than letting others do it then later cause us nuisances. But if this will always be the case then we are limiting others and ourselves to be of service. We highly respect the idea of ‘privacy’ in our vowed life, but there should be a clear distinction on which areas should be considered private and public. But is it not the true spirit of service is always both private and public? Private in the sense that we do it for God and for God alone, and public because God represents all good things, seen or unseen, and ‘whatever we do to the least of our brethren we do it for Him’. For all we know, by allowing others to serve us, we are also allowing ourselves to be of service to them. Simple truth yet we overlooked or simply forgot.

So I will be waiting again for another lunch with them, and will happily do the same thing right after. Until the issue of real service find its way into our hearts.

By the way, did I mention the food is great? Yes, palatable. But you have to wash your own utensils.