Dishes

     Hard work has been an admirable character trait through time and culture. Pushing past opposition, complications, obstacles, annoyances, shortages, enemies, failures, and weather are all parts of physical experiences. Sometimes things do not function as necessary and the expectations of a quickly completed job detonate a midst equipment failure, rain, or an honest mistake that requires fixing.
     Manual labor and physical accomplishment brings a joy to the doers life. Skeptical? The occupational satisfaction of farmers, miners, steel workers, construction workers is much higher than office workers. Why? Certainly not benefits, safety, or work conditions. However, watching effort create an object before you with your own time and hands is satisfying. Clicking repeatedly on an excel sheet brings no sense of completion unless the mind can attach that process to something physical to demonstrate its efforts.
     A simple example of this readily demonstrates the benefits to working with your hands.

     Dirty dishes are the inevitable result of eating. Whether cooking with rocks on a fire, eating at a restaurant, or preparing a meal at home, dishes are used and need cleaning. The basic point of "doing the dishes" is to get off the gooey gunk and ready the dishes for use in the future.
     Initially, the dishes are a mess. However, grinding steadily away at the task gradually shortens the stack, eventually removing the filth to the recesses of memory as a brilliant, glistening array of glassware and plastic reflects the light in the now unburdened atmosphere. Take something dirty, clean it, and you have the results of your work before you - with evidence to prove and satisfy.
     Compare dishes to writing a letter by hand. A real letter has personal touch and care since it heightens the acuteness and humanness of communication. Letters show the time and commitment to do the task with style in a legible manner for others to appreciate. Yet another advantage of letter writing is that busy hands keep the mind occupied while providing it some freedom to explore its imagination.
     Yes, disadvantages to hard work do exist just like they exist for dish washing and letter writing. Hand-washing dishes aren't sterilized as well as dishwasher-washed dishes; similarly, emails are faster and more easily read than hand written letters. Doing things by hand usually take longer to do and are, thus, more inefficient. Inefficiency cannot only be measured by time though. While emails are faster to read and write, letters are kept for years and cherished.
     Physical labor gives an understanding of how complex objects function. Ever take something apart to figure out how it worked? This knowledge boosts confidence since the knowledge aids in experience to solve problems in the future. Without a broader understanding, inventions remain only dreams. Looking outside of an individual's self, working together builds comradeship with other workers performing similar tasks. This has led to medieval guilds, colonial rebellions, and drawn-out sieges.
     Creations by human hands evoke wonder in all people. Petra, the city carved from stone in the desert of Jordan, is beautiful, and people risked their lives to find it against the will of its Bedouin protectors. The gates of Babylon, carved by emperors such as Nebuchadnezzar, remain glorified artwork even today. This is not to forget the pyramids and temples of Egypt which have elicited awe and envy for five thousand years.
     No, scrubbing dishes might not be the most enjoyable way to spend time. However the net gain involved in the work, the habit-forming condition of necessity, and the character earned from the task all redeem the work's worth.
     The next time a simple task interjects unpleasantness in your schedule, roll up your sleeves, and do it. If a masterpiece worthy of thousands of years of praise isn't the goal, maybe you'll craft an unexpected gem within your own life.

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Agatha Tyche