Opportunities for Daily Mindfulness
We enrich our daily experience each time we remember to reconnect to the present moment. When we step out of auto-pilot and savor the sensations of the moment we’re in, we can find great joy in our everyday tasks. We can use any activity we find boring or tedious as a reminder to be more mindful. Brushing our teeth, washing the dishes, cleaning, exercising, and driving can all be very enjoyable activities when we engage in them with full awareness. When we listen and speak with others mindfully, we navigate unpleasant conversations much more skillfully, and we appreciate good conversations much more deeply. Approaching each moment with adventurous curiosity, we cultivate observant stillness as we touch the beauty and wonder of life in the present moment.
Invite Mindfulness Into Your Chores
 Do the Dishes Mindfully
Tune into the sensations of the warm water, observe the light reflecting off the soapy water, feel gratitude for your plates, bowls, cups, and dining ware that support you to eat nourishing foods. |
 Clean Mindfully
Feel your body working hard and appreciate the state of health in your body that allows you to be able to clean up after yourself, enjoy watching your belongings go from dirty to clean. |
 Do Laundry Mindfully
Send love and gratitude into each piece of clothing as you fold laundry, look deeply into all the energy that went into producing the clothes you wear, feel appreciation for having clothes to wash and keep you dressed. |
 Clean the Floors Mindfully
Enjoy the back-and-forth motions of sweeping/mopping/vacuuming as you refresh your space, feel your feet connected to the ground and send love to the Earth for always supporting you, enjoy creating a clean environment to walk and sit mindfully in. |
 Donate + Recycle Mindfully
Collect clothes and objects your don't use regularly and give them to people in need, reuse containers/clothes/materials to prevent waste, take time to learn about recycling practices in your area. |
Joy Within Our Daily Chores
The state of our surroundings contributes directly to our mood, either positively or negatively. If we are drowning in clutter, our thoughts will match the chaos around us. When our space is thoughtfully arranged and free from unnecessary disorder, our mental state can relax. A few years ago, I read a great book called The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo. Marie has multiple books, a thriving practice, and a series on Netflix all dedicated to the Japanese Art of decluttering and organizing. Her approach is very popular because it infuses love and joy into any organization or cleaning project. Her advice for tidying is to make room for meaningful objects, relationships, and experiences by clearing out everything that doesn’t spark joy. Pick up any object, and ask yourself if it sparks joy inside of you. If it does, simply ask yourself where the item belongs and place it in that spot. Once you’ve assigned each object its designated place, maintaining order can be a lot easier. Simply put things back where they belong. We can inspire our happiness by filling our surroundings with things we love (including empty space and neatness). Practicing Marie Kondo’s “does it spark joy” question is one of my favorite philosophies to inspire gratitude for my belongings when cleaning and organizing. I acknowledge and appreciate the items I keep/clean, and let go of the rest with gratitude.
Do you have a meditation you practice or philosophy you use when doing housework?
Practicing mindfulness and giving our full attentiveness to the task at hand is a great way to alleviate any mundane elements of our daily chores.
Practicing mindfulness and giving our full attentiveness to the task at hand is a great way to alleviate any mundane elements of our daily chores.
“The feeling that any task is a nuisance will soon disappear if it is done in mindfulness.” - Thich Nhat Hanh
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Deepen Your Understanding: When working hard at home, work, or on a personal project, it's important to take occasional breaks to balance your wellbeing. Drinking water mindfully is a deep sensory experience, rehydrates our system, and allows our mind to refresh to increase overall work productivity when we return to our tasks.
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