While washing the dishes, you might be thinking about the tea afterwards. Try instead to wash the dishes just to wash the dishes.

Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness.

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

True mindfulness means being fully present in the now:
<ul>
<li>Even simple acts can become sacred</li>
<li>When you give full attention to the moment, peace arises</li>
<li>Doing something just to finish it steals the moment’s gift</li>
<li>Mindfulness transforms routines into presence</li>
</ul>

Washing the dishes to wash the dishes

Mindfulness nurtures true compassion:<ul><li>You can’t love others well without loving yourself gently</li><li>Presence creates connection</li><li>Listening deeply—especially to yourself—is love in action</li><li>Inner stillness radiates outward</li></ul>

Love begins with mindfulness

The breath is your portable peace:<ul><li>Always available, always now</li><li>Anchoring to breath interrupts anxiety spirals</li><li>Conscious breathing slows the mind</li><li>With practice, it becomes a gateway to calm—even in chaos</li></ul>

Your breath is always here

A genuine smile is a simple, powerful practice:
<ul>
<li>Smiling mindfully connects you to peace</li>
<li>It relaxes the body and calms the mind</li>
<li>Smiling isn’t forced joy—it’s choosing presence</li>
<li>One breath and a smile can shift your entire day</li>
</ul>

A smile is an act of love

The present moment is all we ever truly have:
<ul>
<li>Worry lives in the future; regret in the past</li>
<li>Presence unlocks stillness and clarity</li>
<li>Mindfulness isn't escape—it's arrival</li>
<li>Freedom begins when you stop running</li>
</ul>

The present moment is enough

This isn’t a book you read—it’s one you *feel*. It’s about noticing your breath, washing the dishes like they matter, and learning that peace isn’t somewhere you find—it’s what you return to. Written like a gentle conversation, this little book quietly re-centers your whole life. You don’t need incense or a mountaintop. Just a moment.

One of the best available introductions to the wisdom and beauty of meditation practice. --New Age Journal In this beautiful and lucid guide, Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh offers gentle anecdotes and practical exercise as a means of learning the skills of mindfulness--being awake and fully aware. From washing the dishes to answering the phone to peeling an orange, he reminds us that each moment holds within it an opportunity to work toward greater self-understanding and peacefulness.

Washing the dishes to wash the dishes

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Being in The Now