Chaos is often something most people are afraid of. However, this trip, even with it only being the second day, has taught us to embrace chaos.Today we started off by eating breakfast as a group. Some of us experienced almond milk for the first time because we didn't know that regular milk does in fact come in a bag (dang Canadians). Then we split off and went to church, and eventually reunited to find out we had no clue what we were doing. This is where the chaos came in. Our group leaders worked extra hard to figure out what we were all doing for the day and ended up doing an awesome job. We were all sent to different L'Arche houses to experience the unique love that each home had to offer. Later we spent time with many core members making masks in preparation for Mardi Gras. During this time we enjoyed the core members company and tried Ketchup Chips. We got a taste of the beautiful city by exploring the edgy and modern Locke Street and going to the highest elevation of the city and looking out across Ontario. We had dinner with the L'Arche homes again and then came back to the Hamilton home to spend some more time in our home base.
One of the most impactful moments of the day was when a couple of us witnessed an incredibly touching moment between one of the core members and assistants. It was the end of the day, and most of us were lounging around in the living room while others were getting ready for bed or working on other things. The core member sitting on the couch near us was obviously upset for some reason- whether it was from not wanting to take some medicine, or being slightly off her routine, or something else entirely, she was clearly angry and grumpy. The assistants had been on and off trying to make her feel better, with no success, but when she started to raise her voice, one of the assistants went over to see what was the matter, and hopefully put it to rest. He sat down, put his arm behind her on the couch, and looked her in the eye, asking what was wrong. She made a couple disgruntled sounds and looked away, unwilling to reconcile, before he finally asked her again, "what's wrong?" They locked eyes, and a look of tired sorrow and frustration came over the core member's face. Without another sound, she lowered her head to rest on the assistant's chest, and they both closed their eyes for just a brief moment.
The action, so simple, was loaded with love, and was apparent with the joy their reconciliation obviously restored. After a moment, the core member tugged on the assistant's hood, and with a little laugh, he tapped her on the nose (which was obviously something they did to communicate). She returned the gesture, and before we knew it they were laughing and happy again. The assistant walked away with a smile, and the core member continued laughing for another five minutes or so, the pain of the previous hour entirely forgotten. The joy that this little exchange brought to both the core member and assistant was profound, and not something that could be communicated in any number of words. It was the joy of unconditional love, captured in a small moment in time, that we were blessed and honored to witness. It was certainly a moment that one walks away from changed- perhaps not in a way one can put into words, but a different person nonetheless.
Today helped us to realize that some of the most inspirational and touching moments can come from turbulent times. Whether it be an unknown itinerary that leads to a delicious meal shared with friends or a frustrated core member showing what unconditional love really is, never be afraid to embrace the chaos.
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