Chop Wood, Carry Water, Repeat, and Smile

Embracing Mundanity and Valuing the Difficult Moments

Photo by Jason Abdilla on Unsplash

I don’t know what it says about me that I’m the kind of person who has a favourite Zen Buddhist proverb, but I do, and here we are.

Some of you out there are likely already familiar with it. It goes, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.”

It’s simple, but I think it cuts down to one of the deepest issues that we as people face on the day-to-day.

Daily obligations are not enjoyable, simply by virtue of being just that, obligations.

For many, it’s not enjoyable to have to load and unload the dishwasher, or to have to drive to the post office to pick up the parcel that was to big to be left on the front steps. Obligations are obligations, and those things in life that we must do, we tend to rather not do.

There are exceptions of course. Most people have a strange knack for that one chore/errand that they oddly do manage to derive some joy from, but in many cases, those are the exception from the rule. Like myself with cleaning my car (it’s just so satisfying).

Would You Enjoy These Tasks If You Could?

With the knowledge that these are most often exceptions, it can be seen that, by and large, regularly occuring responsibilities usually put a damper on our day.

Now, if we were to do a bit of a thought experiment here, if I was to tell you that I could wave a magic wand, and from then on you could generally enjoy these tasks and obligations, would you agree to let me?

In other words, do we gain anything from actively disenjoying this aspect of daily life?

I for one sure don’t. Taking into consideration the fact that this part of life is a “necessary evil,” it would be much easier to try to accept and find peace with this fact, rather than taking issue with it.

See, part of the issue is that people tend to delay contentment in life. This is especially true in situations where, in order to strive for contentment, something about the routine must change. We as humans would so often rather deal with the familiar pain than gamble on the “promising and new” that’s around the corner.

But then, in other situations, when we do entertain the idea of change, we’ll wait on some sort of life milestone to be the reason that we take that jump, be it a New Year’s resolution, a big promotion at work, or something else.

“Okay, for real this time. NOW I’m going to really take this gardening thing seriously.”

Engaging with Obligations Intentionally

The thing is, when we’re not engaging with those obligations, responsibilities, and commitments with intention, we’re really only doing a disservice to ourselves.

There are small bits of life, just trapped inside of those moments that come and go during our given tasks, but we let ourselves be elsewhere, or be upset about our situations, or simply just hold our breath while waiting for the circumstances to change.

Yet, I believe the answer that would actually benefit one most is somehwat clear.

I’ll illustrate the point with a little story. This one comes from Oliver Burkeman’s 4000 Weeks. (I really do love this book, for those who might not have noticed.)

4000 Weeks

In the book, Burkeman tells the story of a man named Geoff Lye, a British environmental consultant, whose friend, David Watson, passed away very suddenly, and at far too young an age.

Like anyone in this situation, Geoff grieved. But one of the devastating, yet beautiful ways that David’s passing resonated with him was that in seemingly random moments, Geoff would be reminded of his friend, and he would think to himself, David will never get to experience this moment again. He would say things like…

“What would David have given to be caught in this traffic jam?”

The sentiment applied to other mundanities as well. Being stuck in line at the supermarket, or being held up at customer service. David would never see this again, and that thought alone was enough to remind Geoff to simply be grateful.

Stories like this should remind us, yes, life is fleeting, in both good moments and in bad. Life is messy, and beautiful, and difficult, and easy, and sickening, and giddy.

But I believe that the best thing a person can do to keep the spirit of gratitiude and peace alive in their life consistently is to be intentional in those obligatory moments, just as well as in any other moments.

When you are chopping your wood, try be present.

When you are carrying your water, consider do it intentionally.

Because it is in those moments when we forget to do so that we lose our unique and valuable sense of appreciation that we really should all hold dear.

I’ll leave you here with a few journaling prompts for those who want to do a bit of guided thinking around this topic:

• Reflect on a time when you delayed contentment, waiting for a specific milestone. How did that affect your overall happiness and fulfillment?

• Think about a daily obligation you usually dislike. How can you reframe your mindset to find more peace and enjoyment in this task?

• Consider the proverb, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” How can you apply this philosophy to your own life?

---

If you have any thoughts on the topic and have the time to respond, the comments and replies are always open. I’d love to hear your thoughts! Let me know if you interpret the proverb differently, because I really do think it can be taken a number of different ways.

As a reminder, everything on Philosobites is currently free. Nothing is behind a paywall, and Paid Subscriptions are just a way to support me and the work I’m doing around here! If that sounds up your alley, feel free to consider Subscribing, but otherwise, sit back, and enjoy some bite-sized philosophy every Thursday!

Also, if you know anyone who would enjoy this post or the newsletter in general, send it their way. I’d be eternally grateful!

For now, have a great rest of the week. Talk soon!

(Oh, and a quick hello to all of the new faces around here! It’s nice to see you all checking out Philosobites! Really looking forward to engaging with all of you and checking out some of your writing as well. Best wishes!!)