Learning Gratitude in Daily Disciplines

As a kid, one of my chores was to empty the dishwasher.

This proved to be a mental struggle which always took more time than it did to actually do the job of putting the dishes away. Fast forward through elementary and middle school, and I still did not enjoy the task which felt laborious. Bending over, pulling out heavy dishes, putting away silverware in the proper drawers.

But, I began to make a game of how many dishes I could pull out with one hand at one time (my record was four big plates at a time) and that passed the time and made emptying the dishwasher a little less boring.

When I started college, the thrill of the dining hall meant food I didn’t have to help cook and dishes I didn’t have to wash or put away. What freedom!

Until I reached junior year.

I started living off campus which meant grocery shopping, making meals, and the dreaded washing and putting away of dishes. You’d think I would have learned these disciplines in those two years but, try as I might, I avoided it at all costs which sometimes led to piles of dirty dishes in the sink that ended up taking over an hour to wash, put in a dishwasher, and put away.

A few years later, my husband and I moved to England for a new adventure.

I call this year my year of learning daily disciplines.

You see, our apartment in England didn’t have a dishwasher, which meant the process of doing dishes took infinitely longer. The chore of emptying a dishwasher of clean dishes no longer seemed tiresome, but rather like a luxury to which I did not have access.

That year I learned many, many, many times the discipline of doing the dishes right away; of making sure things didn’t pile up in the sink; of taking care of and respecting my space.

I also learned a surprising lesson: my mind was suddenly free.

I wasn’t concerned with the fact that I hadn’t done the dishes yet or put away my clothes or cleaned off the counters, because I had already completed those tasks!

I had more time.

To say it again. I had more time!

For what?

To think; to make plans with friends; to learn a new craft project; to play music; to create; to read; to reflect and be still within myself.

Let me be clear. This change didn’t happen overnight.

I didn’t wake up one day and suddenly think “I’m going to do all the daily chores every morning and never be behind.”

Are there still days where I throw my clothes on the floor instead of putting them in the laundry or hanging them back up? Of course. Do I still forget about my coffee cups and sometimes find two or three on my desk before I take them upstairs to the dishwasher. Absolutely.

But the build-up, the struggle of doing the task has vanished.

I no longer dread putting away my clothes or doing the dishes.

Why? Because I know it will only take me ten or twenty minutes instead of an hour or two. Because I know that after I do this task I will find mental freedom to pursue writing the song in my head or finishing a macrame project I started.

And there is peace in this.

I also know that my mind is free to be able to help others.

My home is open for spontaneity should a friend stop by for tea or need a chat.

My husband and I are able to spend quality time together that doesn’t involve needing to first make the bed and do the dishes.

I like that feeling.

Your daily disciplines may be different from mine. Maybe it’s making the grocery list, budgeting your money, cleaning the bathroom, weeding the garden.

Whatever it may be, are you willing to learn your discipline?

Hard work is ahead my friend, but with hard work comes reward. Learn your daily disciplines and be free in your life.