I Love Washing Dishes
Over the past few weeks of being a doctor and patient, I have had a lot of time to think. And oh those thinks that I thought ...
I recognized that washing dishes manually is great for therapy. My kitchen sink is having a major leaking problem (the joint that connects the two pipes has a hole the size of Moby Dick's blow hole), so we use a basin, wash the dishes and dump the water elsewhere. I've been using my dishwasher almost exclusively for over ten years. So, the idea of washing dishes by hand was not initially a pleasant thought. But as I wash the dishes (with Clorox) 3+ times a day, I look out my window and think thoughts. And here are some of the thoughts I thunk (okay, now I'm being silly) ...
One of the problems that people have today come from not having time to think. While I was washing dishes (and only took me about 15 minutes to wash/dry/put away the things) I realized that the dishwasher hadn't really saved me as much time as I thought it had. I also realized that I clean my dishes more thoroughly than the dishwasher. Yes, you can just pack up the dishwasher all day and run it through it's paces later that night, but it doesn't free up my mental time at all. When I'm washing dishes I can't do anything but wash dishes and think. When I use the dishwasher, I spend time fiddling with the placement of the dishes, and then I'm off doing something else that doesn't allow meditation time.
While washing dishes I reconciled myself to the fact that most of my blood-relatives will never understand me, so why bother trying to explain myself any longer. I realized that the "help" I was getting from these same relatives was actually poisoning my mind and spirit. They were (although probably well-meaning) instilling their fears into my heart. They were undermining my belief in my husband with their statements on why I need to commute to NYC to earn more money so that my husband wouldn't have to work so hard. Now, if you knew my husband you'd understand that is a provider. He is the type of person that will do what needs to be done to meet the needs of his family without complaint. He wants me to work with the kids and leave the money issues to him. My relatives were actually starting us to have cross words about my returning to work and I don't even want to work outside the home! (If only you could have seen his face when I inquired about job openings at Wal-Mart!)
Thank God that the pipe broke. With that extra 45 minutes of washing dishes per day I was able to understand what my chosen role is and why I'm doing what I do. I also realized that I was short-changing my kids by spending so much time worrying about how to increase my income to help my husband maintain our household. So, one day while washing dishes I decided that we needed to cook together, like we did before the layoffs and other financial mishaps happened.
I have regained my enjoyment of my children. We're cooking together, I'm teaching them to do needlecrafts and making learning fun again. Before this epiphany, I was feeling pressure to drum up more virtual assistant business and trying to recreate my corporate salary at the expense of my heartfelt goals and ambitions. Now, I am only concerned with working with my current clients. I'm not worrying about getting new clients or working the network marketing spot right now. God has provided me with a great husband who takes care of me. And we've survived before on less, so I refuse to worry about things that don't fit into our family worldview.
So, the next time you have a sticky situation to work out, try some good old dishwashing or other repetitious manual labor. :)
I recognized that washing dishes manually is great for therapy. My kitchen sink is having a major leaking problem (the joint that connects the two pipes has a hole the size of Moby Dick's blow hole), so we use a basin, wash the dishes and dump the water elsewhere. I've been using my dishwasher almost exclusively for over ten years. So, the idea of washing dishes by hand was not initially a pleasant thought. But as I wash the dishes (with Clorox) 3+ times a day, I look out my window and think thoughts. And here are some of the thoughts I thunk (okay, now I'm being silly) ...
One of the problems that people have today come from not having time to think. While I was washing dishes (and only took me about 15 minutes to wash/dry/put away the things) I realized that the dishwasher hadn't really saved me as much time as I thought it had. I also realized that I clean my dishes more thoroughly than the dishwasher. Yes, you can just pack up the dishwasher all day and run it through it's paces later that night, but it doesn't free up my mental time at all. When I'm washing dishes I can't do anything but wash dishes and think. When I use the dishwasher, I spend time fiddling with the placement of the dishes, and then I'm off doing something else that doesn't allow meditation time.
While washing dishes I reconciled myself to the fact that most of my blood-relatives will never understand me, so why bother trying to explain myself any longer. I realized that the "help" I was getting from these same relatives was actually poisoning my mind and spirit. They were (although probably well-meaning) instilling their fears into my heart. They were undermining my belief in my husband with their statements on why I need to commute to NYC to earn more money so that my husband wouldn't have to work so hard. Now, if you knew my husband you'd understand that is a provider. He is the type of person that will do what needs to be done to meet the needs of his family without complaint. He wants me to work with the kids and leave the money issues to him. My relatives were actually starting us to have cross words about my returning to work and I don't even want to work outside the home! (If only you could have seen his face when I inquired about job openings at Wal-Mart!)
Thank God that the pipe broke. With that extra 45 minutes of washing dishes per day I was able to understand what my chosen role is and why I'm doing what I do. I also realized that I was short-changing my kids by spending so much time worrying about how to increase my income to help my husband maintain our household. So, one day while washing dishes I decided that we needed to cook together, like we did before the layoffs and other financial mishaps happened.
I have regained my enjoyment of my children. We're cooking together, I'm teaching them to do needlecrafts and making learning fun again. Before this epiphany, I was feeling pressure to drum up more virtual assistant business and trying to recreate my corporate salary at the expense of my heartfelt goals and ambitions. Now, I am only concerned with working with my current clients. I'm not worrying about getting new clients or working the network marketing spot right now. God has provided me with a great husband who takes care of me. And we've survived before on less, so I refuse to worry about things that don't fit into our family worldview.
So, the next time you have a sticky situation to work out, try some good old dishwashing or other repetitious manual labor. :)
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