Losing the dishwasher

We have made the decision to say goodbye to our dishwasher. It is a bit of a dinosaur, one of those portable, hook-up-to-the-sink jobs. I think it must have used hundreds of gallons of water every time we used it. But really I think it just made me lazy. The dishes were always piling up in the sink because I figured I could just throw them all in the dishwasher - even dishes that had just been used for a cookie and were perfectly clean ended up in the dishwasher.

I am finding that I am much happier without the dishwasher, and I think I probably use less water. It is much easier to clean up a few breakfast dishes than facing a day's worth of dishes and pans at the end of the day. It doesn't seem like such a chore, and I feel happy to wash up the dishes after a nice meal with the kids, I think of the funny things the kids said or the books we read during lunch, or how much the kids enjoyed something I cooked for them. And of course there are many times they whine and complain during a meal or absolutely refuse to eat what I cooked - but hopefully most meals are fun. Plus C. is perfectly capable of washing her own dishes.

We haven't used the dishwasher for a few weeks and I don't miss it at all, since we are only a family of four. I suppose if we were a big family I might feel differently, but it seems like it is one of those things that we Americans have just decided we can't live without, like big televisions and gas-guzzling cars. I feel like living without it makes me more connected to what I am doing somehow. It's all about mindfulness. Thich Nhat Hanh, the Buddhist monk says, "If while washing the dishes we think only of the cup of tea that is awaiting us, thus hurrying to get the dishes out of the way as 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." It's true - give it a try! Be connected!