It all happens at the kitchen sink.
One of the most significant places in the whole home is the kitchen sink. There, with hot water and detergent, several vital things are happening simultaneously
First, the dishes are washed. You can’t just let them pile up and fester into gunky science experiments. There’s a whole O.H.& S Arch folder of reasons explaining why the dishes must be cleaned. Hygiene, detergent and microbes are part of this vital document.
Secondly, like mowing the lawn and trimming the hedge, you can actually see where you’ve been and what you have accomplished. There is a great smirking sense of satisfaction when you can put away shiny dishes knowing that you have been responsible for making something shiny.
Finally, and this is the really good bit, people talk to each other over the kitchen sink. It works especially well when one does the washing and the other stands next to them to do the drying and putting away. There is teamwork, there is cooperation, and there is conversation. A menial but important common task is accomplished together and the relationship is stretched, enhanced and enriched. I once knew a Bishop who understood this very well. He would always volunteer, almost insisting on helping with the dishes. I always used to think ‘Good Golly Gosh’ what a humble Bishop. How lovely and gracious. It wasn’t until years later that he fessed up and revealed his ulterior motives. By the time we got through the salad servers, the dinner plates and the whiskey glasses, he knew me better than I knew myself. He was a very good Bishop indeed.
So, while the kitchen sink might not seem particularly glamorous and sexy, it is where splendid intangible things occur. Do not shy away from this place.