I’m pretty sure I’m the best darn dishwasher loader in the world. That’s a bold statement, I know, but since the pandemic started, I’ve had even more opportunity to prove my expertise. The trick to being a Grand Master of Dishwasher Loading is what I call, “working the puzzle.” You’ve got to get as many pieces in the machine as possible without letting them overlap in order to ensure each dish gets truly clean. And you have to time the running of the dishwasher so it falls in the off-peak hours to decrease your electricity bill, but also so the dishes you need will be ready by the next mealtime.
Pre-COVID-19, I prided myself on being a self-publishing expert, an award-winning writer, a highly regarded speaker, a well-respected coach, etc. I liked to think of myself as a cutting-edge creative entrepreneur and a community catalyst. I believed my busy schedule and long list of tasks were how I added value. I was a warrior, ready to fight the world to prove things could be done better. I’m frankly baffled how in my pre-COVID life I ever had time to even empty the dishwasher.
Things are much quieter now. I still have lists of tasks to complete, but none of them seem urgent. I can take my time and get to things when I feel like it, or not do them at all. In many ways, that feels good, but I also feel guilty that the old fire in my blood has cooled and ashamed that I’m not contributing as much I once did. I was brought up to have a strong work ethic and raised in a nation that rewards and expects productivity. But did all that rushing around really make me happier? Was that constant quest for achievement really my true nature?
I think back to when I was a kid and, to be honest, I was pretty lazy, when I was allowed to be. I was perfectly happy lying on the couch all day reading and watching old movies or playing a board game with my brother. I did my chores because my mother made me. I exerted myself only in games with the neighborhood kids, and even then, I was always the first child to need a break. I was perfectly happy lying in the grass watching the clouds float by and making up stories in my head. I was not a terribly ambitious child. Most the time I didn’t care if I came in first or last. There were a few times when I wanted to be best, but not bad enough to actually become the best.
