Finding delight in dull tasks

On my regular visits to our RSI military canteen, I keep watching this woman at the cash counter. She is Mithili, who, with mo-numental patience, meticulously goes about managing her rather monotonously mundane work, without a modicum of ennui/irritation.

With a cha-rming smile she even keeps answering copious queries, shot by the shoppers, regarding various canteen items. Maybe, she finds supreme joy in her job, owing to which, the seemingly spirit-sapping work doesn't seem to be, even a smidgen, strenuous to her.

Here, I am reminded of my trip to a village sometime back. As I was strutting around the village streets, I happened to see a scrawny-looking woman, scrubbing the soot-slathered surfaces of several dirty vessels. After completing the scrubbing task, when she tried sluicing them under a str-eam of tap water, I saw her face shine with stark brightness, sparkling more than those vessel surfaces! Indeed, it was evident she found enjoyment ev-en in that exceedingly dull, energy-enervating exercise!

Incidentally, many of us often find ourselves, being saddled by a salvo of sundry insipid tasks, some of which cou-ld be spirit-busting (even body-whacking and nerve-jangling)! Howsoever dull the tasks may be, still, we are for-ced to do them because of no exit/escape route.

So, during such moments try finding delight in what we are doing. For this, before embarking on that "dull-work expedition", we should at first try letting our mind glide around some positive thoughts to get the required fillip to work. The positive thoughts could be in the form of appreciation/compliments we may receive on co-mpleting our work. Or, we may think of treating ourselves to a fabulous food, film trip or fun outing after finishing the work.

Or, if not anything, we can think of rest and relaxation the peace-replete mind would enjoy after our toil. We should remember, once we enjoy doing something, even drab works turn out to be a doddle. And once we demur at doing something, even a deadly small task appears to be dreadful Sisyphean task!