Washing Dishes with the Dali Lama

Work the soap into a lather
with steaming water from the faucet.
Nothing else should really matter,

like your temper and the chatter
in your mind of how at work you lost it.
Work but soap into a lather.

Then practice working slower, better.
Every bite you once tasted
savor once again. Every bit of matter

scrape it from the silverware. Wonder
if you must, how the monkey mind is wasted.
Don't work yourself into a lather

because you're human. There is no cloister
where a monk is perfect. Don't posit
theories that you can not answer.

Washing dishes you can master
and be thankful there's a faucet,
but if not, there still is water.
Nothing else should really matter.