Corn on the cob and mindfulness…
Episode 56.
Corn on the cob. Summer. 1981. Nutley, NJ. On the back stoop of Grandma & Grandpa Ackerman's home. Cousins.
What is most salient about this photo, now considered vintage, taken 40 years ago? ...my bowl cut? ...my classic Yankees shirt? ... the intense focus we are giving to our shucking?...
That is what I see- such concentrated effort; such deliberate intention and attention to our task.
I was not quite 3 years old, yet I had already been charged with enough assignments by Grandma Ackerman to afford me this lesson in paying close attention to the job at hand. When Enid Ackerman asked one of her cherished grandchildren to help her, it was a privilege and an honor, but also a vetting.
Here, flanked by 2 of my 7 elder cousins, I was intent on earning the praise of Grandma, not only of a job well done, but of a job done well... of which I already intuitively knew there was a distinction...
A job done well was not necessarily perfection, I am coming to learn, now, 40 years later... but well as with mindful focus and attention. There are hundreds of "tasks" we have on our plate each day, from a rote task of brushing teeth, to a habitual task of shutting off the light when leaving a room, to an autopilot task of fastening our seatbelt when getting into the car...
Tasks escalate in focus and attention when the cognitive load increases- calculating expense reports for work; or when the emotional stakes are high- responding to a text from a partner about a challenging issue... but regardless of the magnitude or weight, we actually choose how much of ourselves we bring to the task. We can decide to attend fully to the daily regimen of tooth brushing and the "simple" job of shucking corn, or we can remain on autopilot, plowing ahead, skimming the surface, and never truly settling in to "be in it". Intention and attention to these "simple" tasks allow us to "be in" the juice of life.
To these three cousins, on this summer day, these 24 ears of corn for the family were much more than simple. These robust husks; these delicate, entwined silks- they deserved our attention- because we were devoted to our matriarchal grandmother and she had asked us to do a job well.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Based on the diligent expression on my face, still tender with baby cheeks, this lesson in mindfulness was important long before "mindfulness" was a buzz word. This is not to say I have spent the past 40 years as a mindfulness practitioner- just that I can appreciate and wrap my arms around this photo as the groundwork of focus and devotion to each task, as if it were the only thing on earth to be done in this moment.
Today I am reminding myself of this lesson by pinning this photo on my desk.... Be HERE. Do this one task. There is no hurry. There is no rush. This deserves your attention. This deserves deliberate intention. This moment. This fleeting moment. Because Grandma Ackerman's distinct gravely voice requesting shuckers is no longer here. And each moment in her presence was a gift. Each moment. Is a gift. Be Here. In the juice of life. Reminding myself. Again. And Again. Here.
Love, Jessica
Thank you, Margie and Holly, for shucking with me. Thank you to my other Ackerman cousins, David, Bob, Steve, Bill, and Ginger, for letting me tag along in your footsteps and for showing me the ropes.
“Live with intention.
Walk to the edge.
Listen Hard.
Practice wellness.
Play with abandon.
Laugh.
Choose with no regret.
Appreciate your friends.
Continue to learn.
Do what you love.
Live as if this is all there is.”
- Mary Anne Radmacher
"Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are."
- Jose Ortega y Gasset
"The moment one gives close attention to any thing, even a blade of grass it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself."
- Henry Miller
Do it all with Love. Nothing is promised. But everything is workable.
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