At the last parish council meeting a few weeks ago we seriously discussed putting a lock on the kitchen door. This is because folks use the kitchen and do not clean up after themselves. This happened again on Saturday night. Teenagers were in the kitchen and after vigil there was a mess (those two things might not be related, but they are both true facts). The easy way to fix this is to lock the door. But what is the lesson in that? The parish council would like us to deal with this proactively as a parish family. Parents need to supervise their children – not just in the kitchen but in all aspects of life. Not helicopter stalk their children. But teach them what is right and wrong, to clean up after themselves, to be kind to others, to think about the needs of others before themselves, etc. And adults need to understand: your mother does not work at the church. And even if she does, she should not have to clean up after you. The Lord has blessed us with a beautiful and growing physical plant. If we can’t care for the 100 square foot kitchen how will we care for a new school and a new church with thousands of square feet? We have a responsibility before the Lord to care for what He has given us – otherwise why would He give us more? It is NEVER someone else’s job to clean your mess. This sort of entitlement has no place in Orthodox Christianity. As Orthodox Christians we take responsibility for our actions and any repercussions that come from these actions. It is time to change our paradigm here: the parish does not have a maid service. Let’s start by being responsible in the kitchen, because we have a lot more to take care of coming soon!