pile of dirty dishes stare at me as I return home after a long day at work. It’s a routine for me now.

I dash into my bedroom before I sneak a peek. I unpack and get into comfortable clothes while the dishes wait patiently for their ‘bath time’. Though commonly a ‘dreaded’ household chore, I’ve found doing dishes rather therapeutic.

I don’t keep the dishes waiting for too long. They’ve probably been out the whole day and the stains get tougher over time. I put my mobile on a side while the ‘explore’ option on Spotify takes a spin at me; it’s a chance to discover some new music.

I’m making it sound like I’m Mr Snow White (singing and dancing while doing the dishes). But with something I have to do daily, I’d prefer to make it a happy place rather than one I loathe.

Apart from the male privilege, I’ve been so pampered throughout my life that I never had to do any household chores. Living away from home, and by myself, has taught me many a thing. One of these is to take pleasure in everyday things — or things that one has to do on a daily basis.

Take my word for it and look at these tasks from another perspective. The kitchen is messy, and the dishes are scattered around the sink as if forsaken. Over the next few minutes, I’m immersed in rubbing the sponge over the dishes, cleaning them, and pampering them with bubbles under the running tap water. One by one, as I stack the washed plates and bowls and other kitchen utensils, I feel a sense of calm. It’s as if I’m unwinding after a rather chaotic day. Having channeled my energy in the activity, I almost feel like I’ve washed some of my worries away.

This is one of the few things I can do to create order. The messier my day has been, the harder you’d find me scrubbing the dishes clean.

Then, one last scrub of the kitchen counter seals the deal. I’ve managed to create order from chaos. If I can’t do that with my life in general, I sure can do it to my kitchen and the things around house.

That said, I do have days when the dishes remain dirty. It’s okay if they’re messy, but it’s great if they aren’t. One thing is for sure: it’s in everyday chores that we need to seek happiness. Doing dishes can help you unwind, just as it helps me unwind. The dopamine rush I get after seeing the kitchen sparkling clean serves to banish many a day’s frustrations from my life.

So, as you must perform certain tasks every day, it would help if you started enjoying them. One way to do that would be to do your task really well, or have some fun with it. For instance, I keep changing the arrangement of my kitchenware. I also bring new additions; all that keeps the fun quotient alive. In other words, it would help if you change your attitude towards certain things that you have to do as a routine, even if that’s doing your dishes.

The writer is based in Lahore and currently works
at COLABS

Doing dishes can help you unwind, just as it helps me unwind. That dopamine rush I get after seeing the kitchen sparkling clean serves to banish many a day’s frustrations from my life.

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— Illustration: Supplied