Rosie

We recently welcomed a new member into the Green family. Her name is Rosie, and she’s worth every penny we paid for her. She’s small, round, and cute, and she works really hard.

She is a robot vacuum cleaner.

I know many of you reading this have had your own Rosie for years, but I could never justify the cost. After all, how long does it really take to vacuum the house with an upright? (24 minutes and 12 seconds, in case you’re wondering.) Plus, when I vacuum, I can count that as daily exercise. Can’t I?

Except, I hate to vacuum. So I postpone the task until I know company is coming.

I recently read a friend’s social media post about how much she loved her robot vacuum, and I felt envious. (Don’t even get me started on the evils of social media and how it makes us all feel like we’re missing out.) She listed the brand and style, and I went immediately to Amazon to see if I could afford one. It was nearly $500! No thank you.

Still, a girl can dream, can’t she? I clicked on the reviews and read oh, so many of the nearly 5,000 4 and 5-star ratings. That’s when my life changed for the better.

One sensible user raved about her vacuum, but offered this advice. “The reason this one costs so much is because it has voice command and connects to Smart House devices such as Alexa. If you want the same vacuum without all the bells and whistles for a much lower price, check out older versions from this company.”

Brilliant idea! After a bit more research, I found it. A robot vacuum that does just that: vacuums. Lickety-split I placed the item in my cart and voila! Three days later, Rosie arrived in a box on my front porch.

(Now, I must digress and remind you that after more than a year, we’re still doing construction on our home, adding an apartment so my mom can move in with us. Those of you who have ever lived in your home during construction know the amount of dust created could coat the Sahara desert several times over.)

So on Day 1, Rosie ran for four hours and vacuumed my home twice. I emptied her dustbin thrice. I’m not sure how much time she saved me, since I followed her around and watched, fascinated, while she zigged and zagged under furniture and around obstacles, then returned to her charging dock like she knew exactly where she was going. If I zigged and zagged like that, I’d end up somewhere between Kickapoo and Kilkenny.

Day 2, I decided to run her again for good measure. She didn’t seem to mind, and for the most part, I ignored her. I emptied her dustbin once more, and the floor looked refreshingly clean.

Day 3, I gave Rosie a rest.

Day 4, I ran her again because, why not?

All that to say, if you come to my house unexpectedly, you’ll be fooled into thinking I’ve actually done housework. Good job, Rosie!

One of the great things about this purchase is that Rosie had nothing to do with the dust in my home. She hasn’t created one single mess or caused one bit of disarray. Still, she works tirelessly to make my home clean.

It reminds me of what Christ did for us. He was without sin… yet he did the hard work to clean up after all my messes. Because of Him, I can stand before God pure, gleaming, white. Christ did what I wasn’t able to do for myself.

Today, when Rosie cleans up after my messes yet again, I’ll remember to be grateful… for robot vacuum cleaners, and for the love of Christ that looks beyond my fault and takes care of my need.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21