Realization in the Shower

I realized something a while ago in the shower.

As I stood in the shower, my mind was doing its own thing, coming up with all kinds of random thoughts. “Oh, I shouldn’t have made that comment in the class today. That was very embarrassing.” Or, “I still need to finish the paper, but I am behind the schedule.” I was either regretting over the past, or worrying about the future. This muddled state of mind went on and on, until I suddenly found myself done with showering. I didn’t even pay any attention to the shower because my mind was preoccupied with random thoughts, none of which I could recall clearly. So, I not only wasted the chance to enjoy the shower, but also wasted ten minutes of mental activity because I can’t remember what was in my head. What a bad deal!

Then I realized how much of our life is wasted in this state of mind: on the bus, in the class, while walking, before falling asleep… We are not able to enjoy the moment because our minds are somewhere else; and afterward we can’t even recall what our minds were doing.

So, ever since then, every time I shower, I concentrate my mind and speak to my body. “Dear head, you enable me to think, to see, to hear, to smell, to taste, to speak. You represent me in front of the world, and you’ve done such a good job.” “Dear legs, I am grateful that you’ve brought me all over the world, and you never complain.” “Dear stomach, I am sorry that I sometimes eat too much. I was favoring the pleasure of my mouth over your health. I won’t do that anymore.” “Dear body parts, I am lucky to have all of you here --- Imagine if some components are missing!”

As I speak to my body and pat it on the back, my body feels happy, and that makes me happy, too. My German host family once told me that if you talk to your flowers everyday, your flowers will grow better. So, I asked my body, “You have done so much for me. What can I do for you”? My body thought for a while and said, “Feed me healthy food. Give me fresh air. Let me go exercise. Let me have enough rest. Don’t punish me for emotion’s fault. Don’t twist me to fit other people’s judgment. Love me as you love yourself.”

I will take my body’s advice seriously. Because we will be together all the way till the end.