I spent my long experiment (3 months in the second year) at L’Arche in London. L’Arche is an international family of communities of people with learning disabilities and their assistants who live and work together. It was founded by Jean Vanier in France and is based on Christian principles. I was a live-in assistant, and I helped people with learning disabilities in the morning and evening while they went out to work during the day.
My life at L’Arche was filled with joy and challenge. First some of the joy: celebration of life is at the centre of L’Arche. I experienced the joy of others in the simple things in life; sharing a meal together, sharing our time together listening to music, going out on Saturday, and, of course, birthday celebrations which are big occasions. Friendship and relationships are also central at L’Arche and are encouraged within and outside of the L’Arche community. Laughter naturally brings a lot of joy to the community – there are many comedians at L’Arche who use this gift to the full.

My experience at L’Arche was also full of challenge. I like to plan and to work in a logical way, but L’Arche is not like that. As an assistant, things are always changing, and I had to learn to let go and stop trying to control things – that was hard for me. While there are many joys living in community, as an introvert, I found it difficult to find my own space, time for Mass, prayer and recreation. It took time to build relationships, and to understand peoples’ needs and how best to assist them. I found it to be a steep learning curve and was challenged in ways I had never been challenged before.

The focus on Christian spirituality in the life of the community was also striking for me and very important for my experience there. Each day, we were all welcome to gather for prayer before the evening meal. I was lucky to be there for Easter, which is the highlight of the L’Arche year. The parish liturgies were supplemented by community liturgies, such as the washing of the feet and the Stations of the Cross. My time with the community ended with the Easter experience which helped me to bring together the joys and challenges of a profound experience at L’Arche.