I’m convinced that it does.
When I was here in Oxford four years ago, the spacious kitchen on our floor (first floor, House 10) was the site of many late-night conversations, batches of scones and cookies and bread, much laughter and much sharing of food and confidences. Charity, Jamie, Jacque, Kara and I (in varying combinations, sometimes with one or two others) would stay up until all hours gabbing about travel and God and boys and relationships and culture and life. Charity and I talked until 5 a.m. once; there was also an instance of Jamie brushing her hair with a fork (Little Mermaid-style), and dozens of other hilarious and precious memories.
Last semester, I spent hours upon hours abiding in the basement kitchen with my dungeon boys. (See loads of previous posts.) Countless mugs of tea and French presses full of coffee; Nick coming in from a run to drink a glass of water and make some pasta; Bryce, sitting on the counter eating plain chocolate Digestives and drinking milk straight from the carton; Nathan, inventing new kinds of sandwiches almost every week. Several of Moose’s and my late-night talks took place in that kitchen, and I baked multiple batches of scones, cookies and crumble for those boys, which, bless them, they always devoured posthaste.
Tonight, after an exhilarating but exhausting day trip to London, I made a cup of camomile tea and put in some scones – and then spent the next two and a half hours talking with Jaclyn and Mary Kate. I’ve known Mary Kate for nearly three years – her wonderful parents Tim and Julie are some of my best friends. Jaclyn is our lone LCU soul this semester, so she’s completely new to me. But after tonight we’ve all reached a new level of loving and understanding one another.
It happens in the kitchen. Opening up over snacks or a cup of tea; washing each other’s dishes and inventing new, low-budget meals together; sharing stories and climbing inside each other’s hearts. It happens more here than it does in any other single place in these houses. I’m convinced.
I am so glad that you are there with my girl. I can tell that life is good in House 9. I love you…you and Mary Kate need to hug each other for me.
So many good times were had in that kitchen! Thank you for the trip down memory lane. 🙂 One of my personal favorites was when I decided to break in the new black boots I bought in Whitby. I put them on with the shorts I was going to sleep in and teetered down the stairs to the kitchen at about one in the morning to find you, Charity…and SETH sitting at the table. Haha. I hope you’re doing wonderfully well, Katie! I miss you…
P.S. Love your new site!