The Dance of the Dirty Dishes

Amidst the Coronovirus pandemic and lockdown in India, households are deprived of their much needed maids and cooks. What does this mean? It means that now households must return to the good old-fashioned way of living where everyone has a responsibility and a specific set of house chores, including myself.

No matter what house chore I am given, nothing gives me more bliss and serenity than to unload the dishwasher. I believe it is close to an art form, requiring a balance and a state of mind equal to yoga or Kung Fu. In return, it gives you a stronger and stable state of mind, a persona filled with positivity and responsibility.

The bellows of white steam that wisp out of the machine as you open it create the atmosphere of a sauna, relieving stress and tension from your body. As your fingertips graze the smooth, warm ceramic plates and shiny steel cups, the heat and temperature stimulate your skin and nerves. As you remove plates and cups and bowls from the racks, your mind works systematically to collect the dishes in an efficient manner exercising your brain cells. With around ten plates, five bowls and three cups balanced heavy in your hands, you must take slow careful steps, balancing them as you move them to where they belong. This use of a keen eye, heeding attention to the clatter of dishes, the sensations of  temperature when ceramic and steel are held firmly by your hands induces a state of mindfulness.

Mindfulness involve a state of mind where you are conscious of your surroundings and are in the present, listening and being aware of what is going around you as well as the feelings and emotions inside you. This increased attention to your presence and focus can serve a much needed meditative purpose between work, household chores and reading updated news about the number of cases of the Coronavirus that have increased in the last half an hour.

This idea of putting process over outcome applies to all household chores whether it be unloading the washing machine, cleaning the dishes or watering the plants. In the same way you exercise, doing household chores can allow you to put your mind at rest and focus on the task at hand. The much needed muscle contraction and movement can give you an increased amount of physical exercise that you may not be receiving due to the lockdown and may even release endorphins in your body, inciting positivity and creativity.

The lockdown has brought hundreds of worries from a health, educational and economic perspective. However, at the moment, there is not much you can do. Instead, stay home, stay safe, wash your hands and whenever you can, give a hand at home.