the neighbours must really think we're odd

for most people it is a bit odd to go to a chapel/church service twice every day, but being part of a monastic community, the daily prayers are expected. perhaps the neighbours think we're a bit odd - but compared to the sex industry, pot smokers, and tourists - i'd have say we're hardly the odd-est in the neighbourhood.

but then transport our chapel services to camping. in Amsterdam, the people inside and outside of the chapel are generally aware of each other (from outside you can see our signs and from inside you hear noises every so often) but are usually blocked from each other's sight. but in camping, we can't take the actual chapel with us - and we're just there out in the open singing, praying, reading, and being still. the neighbours were relatively far away (people are allowed to choose where they camp and could have had a tent close to us - but after hearing about a group of 35 people coming together, most people chose to camp further away) - and people were busy with their own thing. but sitting in the silence in the open, in a circle with our hand-made cross (it was about a metre tall and leaning fairly unobtrusively against a tree), i couldn't help but feel odd - and i wondered, what must the neighbours think?

funny thing is, the chapel services, even though they felt very odd to me, were probably not what made us stick out the most.
we stuck out because we came to the dishwashing area with 4 people, 3 tea towels, a humongous bucket full of dirty plates and cups, and these gigantic cups. and we'd approach doing the dishes nonchalantly like we did this all the time (because most of us do :)). we'd even offer to dry other people's dishes if they were alone (and we had come with more people than there was space for).
and we stuck out because we would share our toilet paper - at least i did - i'd leave it in the bathroom because i didn't want anyone in our group to discover at 3 a.m., cold and tired, that there was no toilet paper - and i wouldn't wish that experience on anyone else in the camping group - and since we'd brought 10+ rolls of paper with us, we could afford to 'lose' a couple in the bathroom.
and we stuck out because we were a group of 35 people - of mixed ages (although fairly young - the middle age was probably 28) and mixed cultures/races (such a mixture is not so unusual in Amsterdam but it is in many other places). and we were organized and didn't make too much noise and generally gracious - and those in charge of the camping were pretty impressed with our group.

we're pretty sure we left our make-shift cross behind at the camping - and we joke a bit about what people there at the camping must wonder about our strange group. and i'm not sure i like feeling so odd - or wondering about what the neighbours think. but in hindsight (and thinking over our whole experience), i realize it's not so bad to stick out. it's kind of neat to be able to let others see what it's like to live in a Christian community, including letting them see some of our oddities.