Media

For some reason, at the homeless facility, a lot of people can’t seem to remember my name. Most folks around here just call me ‘Buddha.’ I think it is because, three times a week they hear over the intercom system, ‘Buddhist Mediation in the Chapel’, and then see me walking that way to lead the group and also, many are involved in the group or have attended before.

I work here full-time teaching Job Skills and Workforce Readiness. I teach the Custodial Trade, and help the homeless find work in this field. So, it’s just natural when someone walks into a restroom that I am cleaning, to see me and say, “Oh, hey, what’s up, Buddha?”

Being identified with the ‘Enlightened One,’ teaching meditation, and working full-time as a Job Skills Coach carries with it some responsibility.

But I have devised a way to make everything I do here, as part of my practice. And it has spilled over into my Custodial Training Program with the homeless folks.

When we wipe something down with a sponge or cloth, we think of ‘Generosity.’ We are reminded to not just wipe down the seat of the chair, but the backs, sides, legs, and underneath of the chair also. We are using each chair to practice being generous with our attention. And try to do this with smiles, kindness, helpfulness, and hospitality.

When we dust, whether high, low, or normal dusting, we are reminded of right effort. Others may never notice dust on the top of a florescent light fixture, but we know it’s there. So, we must use right effort to go get a ladder and clean it. And we are not ashamed to get down on our knees for low dusting, cleaning the pipes under sinks or baseboards. When we show right effort toward all the little things in life, they rarely become big things. Much like it is much easier to eat right daily then trying to lose a bunch of weight at the end of the year.

‘Policing’ is when you walk around an area looking for leaks, spills, and trash. It takes patience. How many know that picking up cigarette butts in the same flower bed day after day will teach you patience or you’ll lose your mind?

Taking out the trash is a very common custodial activity. Sometimes it’s easy to tell yourself, “I’m not going to worry about the trash in those offices. I’ll just grab them tomorrow.” But if we realize that we are also practicing right action, the trash will never pile up and stink up the place.

Believe it or not, sweeping and mopping is very relaxing. It’s very much about simplicity in movement. There is no running back into the past where your mistakes are or running into the future where your worries and fears are.

Mopping and sweeping is just about being mindful of this present moment, without stressing about anything. As they say in Zen, ‘When mopping, just mop. When sweeping, just sweep.’

Then there is the ever-needed vacuuming. Some folks love it, some folks hate it. For me, I love it. The vibration and hum of the machine feels like music going through my body. The smooth, back and forth movements are like flinging your dance partner out and pulling her back. And it makes me grateful to be alive.

One thing, that most people dislike, is cleaning windows. And there are so many of them in this place. What I try to do while cleaning, is to think about the word ‘Truthfulness.’ And I like to analyze if my life is as transparent as I want the windows to become. I guess you can say that I’m cleaning my own mind with questions such as, “Am I being truthful with myself, my family, and others? Am I living in truth, accepting the world exactly the way it is, or am I adding my own spin on things?”          

Buffing and Waxing the floors takes place almost every day around here. You can work all day on a floor, just to see it, the next day, get trampled, spilled on, scratched, and ruined in a matter of hours.

So, to stay on top of this job, it takes dedication, but also non-attachment. How wonderful life would be, if we viewed everything this way. If we showed complete dedication to our families, careers, spiritual practice, homes, friends, things and everything else that comes into our lives. But at the same time, we were totally non-attached to the outcome or result of our actions.

One of my favorite Buddhist Scriptures is, “Before straightening the crooked, first do the harder thing, straighten yourself.” So, I don’t know if all this Tantric Housekeeping is helping anyone else out at work, but it sure helps me get through the day.

When asked what our Custodial Training Program was all about, one of my guys said, “Oh, well, it’s just kind of cleaning toilets all day with Buddha.” Maybe that means something, or maybe it doesn’t…but it makes me smile either way.