things like taking a shower, or eating. When you are
in the shower, are you really in the shower? Do you
feel the water on your skin, or are you someplace
else, lost in thought, missing the shower altogether?
Eating is another good occasion for mindfulness
practice. Are you tasting your food? Are you aware of
how fast, how much, when, where, and what you are
eating? Can you make your entire day as it unfolds
into an occasion to be present or to bring yourself
back to the present, over and over again?
Cleaning the Stove While Listening to Bobby
McFerrin
I can lose myself and find myself simultaneously
while cleaning the kitchen stove. This is a great, if
rare occasion for mindfulness practice. Because I
don't do it regularly, it is quite a challenge by the time
I get around to it, and there are lots of levels of clean
to aim for. I play with getting the stove to look as if it
were brand new by the time I'm finished.
I use a scrubber which is abrasive enough to get the
caked food off if I rub hard enough with baking soda,
but not so abrasive that I scratch the finish. I take off