After saying bye to my daughter at Day Summer Camp, my wife and I spent a good 5 hours cleaning the house. Mainly Deep Carpet Cleaning (with always ending up with the agreement to get hardwood floor the “next” summer), and other laminated floor scrubbing with Zokins. I enjoy this kind of day. I rarely eat out simply because I like cooking. Easy gardening (like tomatoes) will always be a good addition to the hot summer. I am just an ordinary happy man, with learning the new pain because I learned English language. Criticizing me as an angry and unhappy man is already the reflection of the social issues they are in.
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Deep Cleaning. Product Packaging. Order Fulfillment. And, other daily “house chores”. Some advise me to outsource them so that I can have “more” time. Yes, I am often busy, but with those “more time”, what would I do? To market myself to look bigger than who I am? Market our product so I would get more money? I am tired of those “purpose” oriented mindset as if there are better things when I focus on productivity. They say it is the time to get happiness with Sashiko. Well, I am already happy by doing those “ordinary” things (Of course, I want to earn money to make my dream happen, but not by sacrificing what I do today).
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Sashiko existed in the ordinary. Therefore, the “ordinary” is precious. As long as I can move (physically), I will not let others do this seeding of happiness. Seriously. Cooking a meal for my daughter’s smile with “Daddy’s food is the best” is the happiness I find & define.
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昔は考えられなかったことなのですが、家事がストレス発散方法だったりします。日常の家事というより、少し日常から離れた家事。日曜大工だったり大掃除だったり（それは家事とは言わないかもですが）。「忙しいなら家事とか代行しちゃいなよ」と、代行天国の米国だと良く助言を頂きます。その方が経済も回るのかもしれません。でもね、この日常の家事を大切にするからこそ、刺し子が活きてくると思うのですよ。毎晩フレンチのフルコース食べながら刺し子って、なんか違和感ありません？（嫌悪感とか間違いとかじゃなく違和感です）。刺し子には味噌汁が似合う。
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2021-07-26 21:44:05
SO YES! hanging on to simple pleasures is hard in a society that doesn’t value them. But stubbornness can be a virtue if it means sticking to what makes you happy. I love your posts because they reflect the mixed reality of being a person, moment to moment. Thank you. How good is a clean floor? Really good.
I so enjoyed this post, sitting drinking tea in my conservatory enjoying my garden, seeing my tomatoes growing in the greenhouse and hearing the birds while practicing my stitching. A relaxing time before beginning work. Its important to take time to notice the world around us and appreciate what we have.
❤️ “The greatest challenge in life is to be our own person and accept that being different is a blessing and not a curse. A person who knows who they are lives a simple life by eliminating from their orbit anything that does not align with his or her overriding purpose and values. A person must be selective with their time and energy because both elements of life are limited.-“
You are so wonderfully authentic my friend. Blessings to you and yours.
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Exactly…ordinary is precious 👏
I don’t perceive you as an angry, unhappy man.
Excellent!!!
I’m going to explore the ordinary. Thank you for the inspiration ❤️❤️❤️
Ah, so well said! Thank you for speaking such truth!
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“The ordinary is precious… I will not let others do this seeding of happiness.” I feel this very much and have been struggling to articulate it, the simple pleasures of being and doing. Thank you for sharing your work and words, I always enjoy reading your posts.
we spend most of our lives on ordinary! it is a wonderful thing if that “ordinary” can be precious to us!
I believe it is the simple things which can become pleasures and make concrete memories.
I would like to apologize that you have had negative responses at times.
Being human is hard. Communicating with our fellow humans is hard enough when we speak the same language. My family, community, and life experiences all contribute to my perspective. It’s so easy to forget that when communicating.
Plus while technology and social media can be wonderful (I know about you and your work because of it) it is also yet another language to learn and translate.
Thank you for sharing.
LOVE