Washing Dishes pt 1
By Corey Ann | January 26, 2010
I am amused with myself before I even start typing this post.
My friends, Mark and Linda, cooked me dinner on Sunday night. It was supposed to be “The Last Supper” because my contract with New Life Lodge is up on Thursday and they are two of my favorite co-workers. They gave me a book called “The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation” by Thich Nhat Hanh. (I am so fortunate to have thoughtful, supportive friends!) Meditation is not my strength. In fact, sitting still is not my strength. Sleeping, however, is a strength of mine.
Anyway, I came here to write about what I’ve read so far- being mindful, being still, being present. And what do I do? I log in to my website, then go to Pandora to put on music in the background. Amusing, Corey.
The first part of this fantastic book is about being mindful in all parts of life. He talks about being mindful when you do the dishes. For those of you who do not know me, HELLO MY NAME IS COREY ANN AND I DO NOT LIKE DOING THE DISHES. If it were up to me I’d have disposable plates. And I have beautiful plates, too! They look stunning when they’re clean and are the best plates to eat off of. But ugggh are they annoying to wash.
“While washing the dishes one should only be washing the dishes, which means that while washing the dishes one should be completely aware of the fact that one is washing the dishes. At first glance, that might seem a little silly: why put so much stress on a simple thing? But that’s precisely the point. The fact that I am standing there and washing these bowls is a WONDROUS REALITY. I’m being completely myself, following my breath, conscious of my presence, and conscious of my thoughts and actions. There’s no way I can be tossed around mindlessly like a bottle slapped here and there on the waves.”
Yes, that makes sense. Yes, that sounds wonderful. And yes, I agree - it is a wondrous reality that I can wash dishes. It is incredible that I can type on this computer. It is tremendous that I can process these thoughts. So why do I not recognize this all the time?
Here I am, a Pitta (FIREEE) and a Leo (LIONNN) living in the US (ROAR). My activity and lack of awareness has been validated my whole life. I can do the dishes, but I am doing them because I don’t want a dirty house, or someone is coming over, or I told myself I couldn’t go see a friend until they were clean. I plan and I act and I focus on the future.
“If while washing dishes, we think only of the cup of tea that awaits us, thus hurrying to get the dishes out of the way s if they were a nuisance, then we are not ‘washing the dishes to wash the dishes.’ What’s more, we are not alive during the time we are washing the dishes. In fact we are completely incapable of realizing the miracle of life while standing at the sink. If we can’t wash the dishes, the chances are we won’t be able to drink our tea either. While drinking the cup of tea, we will only be thinking of other things, barely aware of the cup in our hands. THus we are sucked away into the future - and we are incapable of actually living one minute of life.”
Whoa.
Serious, whoa.
I am absolutely, positively that person who does one thing to get to the next, then while doing the next thing figures out what else needs to be done. At work I think about what I’m doing when I get home, while driving home I make a list of things to do, while executing that list, I think of what has to be done in the morning, and so on and so on. Once I took a trip to Austin that was packed with activities. Tours, wine country, restaurants, shows, and more. I had a good time, but realized that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected. I participated in the activities while thinking about the ones to come.
Ok, now I have spent too much time in the moment and need to go lead a group! More in bit!
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2 Responses to “Washing Dishes pt 1”
Comments
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January 26th, 2010 at 5:17 pm
YES YES YES. This burden my mom says she’d given me of constantly needing to be productive, to do something, etc etc etc!!! I am trying to learn how to stop!!! Good reflections, esp this book. I am terrible at meditation…
January 27th, 2010 at 8:43 am
If I can remember to stay in the moment I can remember to stay alive. I love that part of the book. It is my goal too. However I have years of not living like this. I have a friend that says it like this, “Be gentle with yourself”. I need to remember that too. When my mind wanders I gently remind myseld “Mark, bring it back in buddy” and I can be back. It will take practice. I hope you enjoy washing the dishes.