Foot Washing Friends

Q: What do you get if you cross a shaving blade, a bucket of water, luxurious soap and the most precious ingredient – a wonderful friend? Other than beautifully smooth legs and clean feet? An overwhelming sense of helplessness, thankfulness and humility.

The foot washing, leg shaving imagery reflects the entire emotional readjustment required from being a fully independent, capable, active, decisive individual to a recipient of other people’s generosity and acts of kindness; the likes of which you were not expecting to need until you turned 90. Developing a sense of gratitude that runs deeper than the core of my fractures and an understanding of servanthood that extends wider than horizons previously encountered.

The story of Jesus washing his disciple’s feet truly comes home. John 13:14 -17 ^“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”

“Blessed if you do them”, and furthermore BLESS so richly if you DO them. In the soapy suds and the navigation of the shaver, (I’m told the experts practice on balloons!), we find the stuff true friendship and relationship is made of. Fair weather friends say “Goodbye”. “Hello” reality. “Hello” kindred spirit. “Hello” fellow ‘servant’.  From the wisdom of Marcel Proust “Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom” (and our legs smooth!).

Side note: If you don’t want to go to the extreme of washing a friend’s feet or shaving their legs, just try telling them they are “useless” when you are spreading Vegemite on their toast because they can’t stand up long enough to do so themselves. From personal experience this works well too and is indeed a truthful and well needed account of the facts that forces submission to, and acceptance of, generous acts of kindness. Albeit it doesn’t stimulate the same kind of reflection and soul searching. There is however something to be said for pragmatism and honesty in the roller coaster of emotions!