Savor

What did you savor today? I always crave my morning cup of coffee. It follows on the morning "have to do's" like showering, making the bed, walking and feeding the dogs. As I drag myself down the stairs and into the pre-dawn chill, leashes in hand, I often find myself thinking of the warm, dark roasted brew that will await me on the other end of the walk. Hold onto that image for a minute . . . walking the dogs and thinking about coffee . . . and I promise I will return.

Teacher, poet and spiritual leader Thich Nhat Hanh passed away last week at the age of 95. His writing was popping up everywhere, and I began to read more of the work of this great teacher. He offered this piece of wisdom: “If while washing dishes, we think only of the cup of tea that awaits 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.”

Gulp. Guilty. There I was, walking the dogs, and instead of being present to the first glimmerings of light in the morning sky, instead of listening for the call and response of two neighborhood owls, instead of remaining curious about the sensory world my dogs were exploring, instead of savoring the company of the moon . . . I was thinking about what was next: coffee. Not only did I miss what was in front of me, I realize in looking back that I have no memory of tasting today's cup of coffee. Did I savor it? No. My mind had taken yet another side trip.

Am I awake enough now to savor tomorrow's dog walk and cup of coffee? I hope so, for Thich Nhat Hanh's words were a wake up call to me. I want to learn to be capable of "actually living one minute of life." I don't want to label activities as desirable and undesirable, pushing through some to get others. I want to learn to savor. I want to be present in each minute, moment, second.

The good news is that life is full of places to practice. Coffee? Yes. And if you were a fly on the wall here, you'd have watched me washing dishes with a half smile on my face tonight. I am learning. Wherever you are, whatever activity calls you next, my prayer is that you will engage with deep presence and a half smile, savoring what is.